A Hunger For You
by YuYuAnne
Summary: An AU fic where Byakuya and Rukia are not adopted siblings. Byakuya, a pureblood vampire, is infatuated with Rukia and goes all out to seduce her. But does he have competition? ByaRuki/UlquiRuki/IchiRuki. My first fanfic. DISCONTINUED
1. Boy Interrupted

**Inspired by all the ByaRuki fics already out**

**Hopes it's to your **_**taste**_

**Boy Interrupted **

It was in the late hours of the night. Silently, he sat on the bed next to her. His eyes marvelled over her body. Black lacy tights with rose detail caressed her slender legs. An incredibly short black skirt barely left room for imagination. She wore her usual black Victorian blouse. You could almost see entirely through the chiffon fabric. A black bra was poking through it. Oh, she knew how to tease. Her chest rose up and down and she breathed heavily almost panting making her all the more seductive. Her locks slightly dishevelled; wild even; fitting her feisty personality. Byakuya widened his eyes as he caught the sight of the neck exposed by a few loose buttons. Creamy almost white slender skin was fuelling his desire. He leant down hovering over the sensitive area savouring her sweet scent.

'Rukia,' he purred. His voice was dripping with seduction.

She moaned softly at the sound of his voice and shuffled slightly. A little smirk escaped him knowing she was probably enjoying even the slightest of his touch.

_Naughty girl_

* * *

'Grimmjow-sama!' the brash young man crashed into the posh restaurant. Stumbling over his own feet he lost his balance and tumbled onto the table; smearing over the food.

'Renji! What the fuck do you think you're doing!' Grimmjow demanded ignoring that the level of his voice was attracting the other customers' attention.

He yanked Renji up by the collar, 'I'll give you 10 seconds to disappear from my sight before I wipe the floor with you!'

'Sor...sorry, Grimmjow-sama, but I have something important to...' He trailed off his sentence. Not because he was dripping with what looked like tomato sauce. Not because everyone in the room was gaping at them. But it was the deadly rage emitting from Grimmjow's eyes.

'I don't give a rat's arse! Can't you see that you're..._interrupting_?' Grimmjow nodded over to Orihime who was all the while sitting quietly at the table despite the ruckus.

'Inoue-chan? Why are you here? You here with Grimmjow-sama?' Orihime blushed at the obvious. Renji could really be quite dense at times. At first she thought he was being sarcastic but no, he was just simply a block-head.

'It's Valentine's Day. Why the hell do you think she's here with me at a romantic restaurant?! Now get lost!' Grimmjow practically threw Renji towards the doors. 'Fucking mixed-blood.'

Embarrassment overwhelmed the girl but her great shyness told her to stay out of the confrontation. She knew Grimmjow all too well. There was simply no stopping him when he was infuriated. Besides, he was only angry because Renji ruined their night. He was angry because it was important; she was important to him.

'Bu-bu-but, Grimmjow-sama, I-'

'Listen, you moron,' he hissed, 'if you don't leave this instance, I'm going to lose my temper. And you know what happens when we lose our temper, right?' Grimmjow's blue eyes were glowing with rage. The evil inside him was clearly evident.

'You don't want things to turn _bloody_ now, do you?'

Panic wrote over Renji's face quaking through his entire body.

_Now, I truly am in Hell_

* * *

'Rukia,' he whispered again but a little softer this time.

Now straddling her, he gently stroked her face as he inched closer to her neck. He took in her scent once more before eventually stroking his tongue along her neck. She jerked and slowly opened her eyes. A dark shadow was weighing her down and scratching at her neck. Realising what was happening she opened her eyes wide and pushed against the weight. Strong as he was he barely moved a muscle.

'Kuchiki, what the Hell are you doing?' her voice was firm. She knew what he was trying to do. All she hoped was that he would not bother her, at least not tonight.

He pulled back and pushed his face into hers. His eyes flirted with hers. 'Rukia, I'm hungry.'

'Go elsewhere. I'm trying to sleep.' She looked so uninterested even if the most handsome man was openly trying to seduce her..._again._

'Oh, but Rukia, you know we're not allowed to just eat anywhere we please. We have rules to follow, no?

'Whatever,' she turned away slightly already bored. Consumed by all the alcohol she drank moments ago, she had no energy to argue. Her head was spinning and she could hardly move.

He smirked again. Seeing her turning her neck to face him; practically inviting him. He moved and started kissing her neck.

'Kuchiki,' she hissed.

He noticed the formal name she addressed him with again. _She seriously has become cold and distant lately. I'll soon find a way to fix that..._

His tongue slithered across her neck before he finally sunk his fangs into her. She stifled a groan at the pain. Then he began to suck on her blood greedily and she winced at the slight pain. The sooner she filled his hunger the sooner she could be rid of him.

He stroked her face as he continued to drain her energy. Her blood tasted so sweet. Instead of quenching his thirst it increased his desire. It was a desire; a hunger for her. His touch began to travel downwards.

_Rukia, only you can make me feel this way. Why? Not even I know._

As a vampire, your thirst for blood often clouds your judgement. Often you become like beasts in order to satiate your hunger. Kuchiki Byakuya belonged to one of the five pureblooded vampire families. Purebloods were not permitted to feed on any vampires other than those who were also purebloods. It was essential to keep their bloods pure as they were the first ever vampires. Although there were not many female purebloods, practically all of them willingly offered their blood and body to him. However, he ignored them all to pursue and almost beg for the blood of this woman.

His hand slid down her arm and her side. Eventually, he chose to dwindle on her leg slowly stroking her thigh.

_You do something to me._

_Rukia._

* * *

His soft strokes on her legs were sending shivers within her. A small gasp escaped her lips. _Why aren't you stopping him, Rukia! You can't give in now!_

'Kuchiki...' she whispered. Her energy was weakening. It was time to stop. Gradually, she raised her hands but winced more as he took another bite which stopped her tracks. Her hands fell back to her sides and gripped the silk sheets as he bit harder.

* * *

He noticed her slight hesitation but he heard her slight moan. She was enjoying this but just needed more convincing so he chewed on her again.

_I'm so addicted to you, Rukia. I just can't stop myself..._

'I thought I smelt blood.'

Byakuya stopped drinking and sighed. _How troublesome..._

'Grimmjow?'

'I'm surprised you didn't sense my presence earlier.'

Byakuya sat up, still straddling Rukia and looked over to the door which Grimmjow was leaning against. Blood was smeared over his lips and chin but somewhat adding to his appeal. Grimmjow cocked his head over to see the woman on the bed still limp from the ordeal.

'Was her blood really that irresistible?'

It was true. Her blood was so intoxicating he completely lost himself in the moment. How else could he have not notice that obnoxious figure approaching. He even drank a little too much for Rukia to semi pass out. Next time he should be more careful.

'And here I thought you were feeding on one of those whores.' Grimmjow smirked. 'Think you got a little carried away though, huh?'

Byakuya turned his attention back to her. She was asleep but her puncture wounds were already healing. Purebloods possessed high power including rapid regeneration. This was why it was important to keep their blood pure or else their powers would be diluted.

'I can always feed her,' he grinned eagerly as he tenderly stroked her cheek.

'Like she would drink from _you_,' Grimmjow scoffed.

A wave of anger rippled through Byakuya but remained caml as per usual. 'What do you want, Grimmjow?' He could hardly contain the level of venom in his words. How dare he interrupt him and Rukia and mock him.

He chuckled to himself. Satisfied that he managed to strike a nerve with Kuchiki Byakuya. So it's true when they say the truth hurts.

_How does it feel to be worshipped by every woman but ignored by the one you secretly loved? Women despise me yet I'm worshipped by Orihime. Oh, yes, I pity you Kuchiki. Or maybe I take sick pleasure in your suffering._

He chuckled some more.

And the mocking continued. Byakuya truly hated this guy. How could such an arrogant, rude, annoying bastard be a pureblood? If he wasn't he would have killed him a long time ago. But because there were so few purebloods nowadays it had become illegal to kill a pureblood. Of course, being a pureblood himself he wouldn't be killed if he did but he would be imprisoned for all eternity.

He noticed the resentment behind Byakuya's grey eyes.

_If I taunt you enough to start a fight I have all the reason to finally beat the shit out of you. Maybe I could finally get my revenge you stuck up prick!_

'You know she'll never be yours, right?'

Byakuya finally stood up from the bed. For some reason, those words seemed to hurt him. Rukia was really important to him. Everybody could clearly see it. Yet Rukia didn't pick up on it at all. He began to stride closer to Grimmjow as he did the same.

_You're mine_

'What's the meaning of this?' Ulquiorra stepped into the room.

'Stay out of this, Ulquiorra,' Grimmjow hissed.

He noticed the smudged blood around Byakuya's mouth and instantly recognised the smell. It took his entire will power to mask the anger within him.

'Aizen-sama has gathered an urgent meeting. All male purebloods must attend.' He looked at them both as neither of them stood down. 'NOW.'

'You know, I can find better things to waste my time rather than with a lower-class pureblood like you, Grimmjow,' Byaguya scoffed.

'Cocky bastard, I'll kill you!'

He went to swipe a punch towards Byakuya but his head ached in immense pain. He fell to his knees clutching his temples whilst wailing in agony.

'Uliquiorra, get the fuck out of my mind!'

'Maybe _now_ you will decide to attend the meeting?' Uliquiorra said as he held his usual stoic expression.

'Fine! Fine!' With that Grimmjow scrambled over the floor to exit the room.

* * *

As he walked further and further away from Rukia's room his pain slowly subsided.

'Just you wait, Uliquiorra. One of these days I'll tear you apart. I'll tear_ all_ of you apart!'

He hated the fact that he belonged to the lesser purebloods. Both Byakuya and Uliquiorra were above him and so possessed greater powers than him. This was the reason why they looked down on him. It was the reason why pretty much all the other purebloods looked down on him. But he vowed to show them who was truly was superior the moment he got the chance.

_Just you wait..._

* * *

'The same goes for you, Byakuya,' Uliquiorra remained calm as ever but followed Byakuya's gaze.

'I'll take care of things here. Aizen-sama is waiting.'

He took one long look at Uliquiorra. Would Rukia be safe? But then his worries faded quickly. Being the teachers' pet like Uliquiorra was he wouldn't let any harm come to another pureblood. Not unless if it was for his precious 'Aizen-sama.' He headed towards the doorway.

* * *

Droplets dripped onto the tip of her tongue. A warm, fuzzy wave washed through her. A fire burnt from the pit of her stomach to the back of her throat. Her heart pumped faster telling her she was hungry.

_What is this sweet taste seeping through?_

With eyes wide open she saw Uliquiorra pushing his cut wrist towards her. Unable to control her animal instincts any longer she took hold of his wrist and sucked at her meal.

'That's it, Rukia, drink as much as you desire.'

She bit into his flesh to consume more of his blood and he groaned at it. He was self-trained not to show any emotion. That meant weakness. But Rukia, was his weakness.

'I'm sorry, Rukia, I wasn't here to protect you again,' he said as he stroked her silky black hair and closed his eyes. 'Forgive me, my dear.'

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Hopefully you guys liked it. Currently, I'm watching a vampire manga so drew some inspiration from that. It may be a little slow but I wanted a little suspense to keep it intriguing for you. 'True love burns slow and lasts forever.'

**Anyways, it's my first fanfic so welcome all reviews. Please be gentle... Ja**


	2. Coalition Order

**Hi people, I'm finally here with an update. 1SuperKawaii, rukiharem, rollmodel, epic unicorns, zangetsuichigo, royalaces21, lemonorangevanilladrops, evyk, lifescape, IcePrincess95, obsessed dreamer and Nathalie Shiffer, thank you all for the reviews and support. Thanks to those who added this to theiralert list and fave story too! You all sure now how to make a newcomer feel welcomed! I just hope I don't disappoint...! Bonus points for rukiharem and epic unicorns to guess I took inspiration from VK. Although I've added my own twists, you'll see. royalaces21, apologies if my version of Grimmjow is a bit... well grim =p It's an honour that you compare me to evenstar lady but I'm no way near her high level of standards! I'm a big follower of her works too! Special thanks to Nathalie Shiffer for making me your fave author. You rendered me speechless... But I'm afraid I can't answer your questions because I don't want to ruin the surprise. Don't hate me for it =p**

**Anyways, on with the chapter. I forgot to mention it's a bit OOC as it's an AU but I'll try not to overdo it**

**Will this quench your **_**thirst?**_

**Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach or the characters**

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Coalition Order

Ulquiorra walked inside the Assembly Hall with Renji closely behind him. It was an impressively big but odd room. Strangely, there were no windows and no seats. A few little chandeliers scattered on the sides but no lighting at the centre of the room giving it an overall moody atmosphere. The walls were painted dark maroon just as all other rooms were. Despite the vast space, the walls were left bare. No sculptures, no paintings, no ornaments, no nothing. There was a black and white chequered floor like a chest board but at a diagonal angle. At the far end of the room was their King Aizen who sat on the only seat in the hall.

'Glad you finally decided to turn up, Ulquiorra.'

Grimmjow's voice was filled with spite determined to pay him back for inflicting pain on him moments ago. However, Ulquiorra walked on to stand next to Byakuya, totally ignoring Grimmjow in the process.

'Renji, what happened to your face?' Byakuya noticed the swelling on one of his eyes. The slight cut on his lip was not bleeding but it definitely smelt fresh.

'Eh...'

'Yeah, Renji, what_ did_ happen to your face?' Grimmjow's eyes bored into Renji's. It was asked with a hint of threat instantly making him feel small.

'I err... I tripped,' he meekly offered.

Renji knew his place. It wasn't like Grimmjow would get punished especially not over something so trivial. Grimmjow was a pureblood whilst he was only a mixed-blood. Mixed-bloods were often bullied. Only a rare few purebloods pitied them. When a pureblood turns a human into a vampire they create a mixed-blood. Their blood is contaminated and so will be their next generation. They lacked half the power of a pureblood. As a result, they lacked half the respect too and were often given minuscule or even degrading jobs to do. This was why many purebloods refrained from drinking from mixed-bloods.

'You should be more careful of where you tread, mixed-blood.' Grimmjow absolutely hated mixed-bloods. However, there was a little part of him were glad as it meant they were shunned and not him who was an inferior pureblood.

Renji simply nodded. If he made a fuss Grimmjow would make sure he'd sooner regret it.

'Aizen-sama,' Renji closed his eyes and bowed to his master, 'I have brought you all our male purebloods as you requested.'

'Much appreciated, Renji.' Aizen spoke coolly.

The most powerful pureblood to date was holding his face in his palm as he leant slightly to the right in his throne. There was a faint smile on his face but it didn't necessarily mean he was in a good mood. He commanded so much fear throughout the vampire population no one dared to cross him.

'Your services are no longer needed for now. You may take your leave, Renji.'

'Yes, Aizen-sama.' Renji bowed again before closing the double doors behind him.

'Aizen-sama, has something occurred for you to call upon us so urgently?' Ulquiorra asked.

The King looked over to his most trusted advisor who held his usual placid exterior. Ulquiorra Cifer was obedient and incredibly powerful. In addition, he was an extremely clever subordinate; maybe even too clever for his own good...

'As you are already aware of, this war against the humans has taken its toll on our numbers. The most recent example, of course, was our late brother, Shiba Kaien. He will be greatly missed.'

Byakuya twitched at the sound of the name. He and Kaien didn't see eye to eye for some reason. Even so, Byakuya was sad to lose such a valuable pureblood. It was such a sudden loss.

'We simply can't risk any more casualties,' Aizen continued. 'As an insurance policy I have decided to issue the Coalition Order.'

'The what order?' Grimmjow interrupted without thinking. Aizen hated repeating himself. He spared no time for ignorants.

'As male purebloods you must find a soul mate and produce an heir within these 2 years.'

After the death of Kaien, there were only 9 purebloods left. Many had died along the way, killed by humans or even by fellow vampires. If you drank from a pureblood you were able to withdraw great powers too. This was all too tempting for some. Some purebloods went missing. They either ran away but more likely were also killed. Aizen noticed the decrease in numbers and had to manage it before the entire pureblood population died out.

The Coalition Order came to a shock to all the male purebloods. Even the most stoic Byakuya and Ulquiorra couldn't stop the emotions swimming in their eyes. For a brief moment they looked at one another yet with the same expressionless face.

_Soul mate..._

Grimmjow furrowed his eyebrows. 'That's ridiculous! You're seriously saying you're going to force us to-'

'It is to boost the pureblood blood population. If it dies out we will then have to feed on inferior vampires or perhaps... _humans_.'

Aizen chose his words correctly. He knew how much purebloods hated mixed-bloods and humans. Under no circumstance would purebloods willingly feed on their blood. The silence brought a smile to Aizen's face. Everyone always succumbed to his wishes eventually.

Ulquiorra noticed a slight smirk seeping through Aizen's smile. He wasn't simply pleased. There seemed to be a hint of conspiracy behind it. _This is to boost our population? Is that really your true intentions?_

'I'm not asking you to marry them, of course. I would just like an heir, male or female, I don't care which.'

_Soul mate..._

* * *

Beside the pond, Byakuya stood alone. Clear waters glistened from the sunlight skimming across the surface. Golden dragonflies buzzed around the jungle of lily pads and reeds. Occasionally groups of koi would spring from underneath and put on a little dance show.

It was so lively, but he didn't seem to care. He was gazing for what seemed like forever but not at anything in particular. His mother adored this pond of theirs. Everyday, she would walk by and admire the scenery before continuing her daily routine. But now, she no longer did that. She passed away suddenly. At the tender age of 8, he had now lost both parents. His father died when he a baby so had no recollection of him. Ever since then it had been only him and his beloved mother. Now, he was standing there by her favourite feature of the mansion... _alone_. After his loss, he spent everyday at the pond. It seemed to resemble her. If he was close to the pond he was also close to her; like he still had some sort of connection to her.

_Oka-san, I miss you very much_

'Byakuya!' she yelled whilst running towards him. Yet, he didn't even flinch at the sudden sound.

'There you are,' she paused to catch her breath back from the light sprint. 'We were waiting for you. Why didn't you show up for class again?'

'I wanted to be alone,' he said in hope that Rukia would take the hint and move on.

Rukia's lips twitched finding it difficult to find the right words.

_What should I say?_

At times like these she wished she had the words of wisdom of an intellect or perhaps the satirical humour of a comedian to relieve great pain. To see anyone struggling with bereavement made her feel so helpless, let alone a friend.

She tugged lightly at his sleeve noticing he was still wearing his funeral robes. 'Hey, why don't you come round ours? I got a new rabbit. She's really cute and adorable,' she beamed despite the lack of expression on Byakuya's face. She pulled on his robe once more to encourage him.

'You'll like her.'

He gently moved his hand away so the fabric slipped from her grasp. 'Maybe some other time...'

Still he was staring into nothingness. Never once did he look up to acknowledge. He wasn't spending time on his own. It seemed as though he was pushing everyone away from him. It annoyed Rukia a lot. He wasn't the only one who lost someone important. Byakuya's mother also took care of her too. And she lost her. But she didn't want to lose Byakuya too. She couldn't stand by while he continued to wallow in grief.

Overruled by her anger and frustration she picked up her fist and threw it into Byakuya's face. A red blur slowly etched on his face but all just stared at her with shock from the sudden violence.

'How much longer are you going to mope around like that?' Her hands began shaking from offending one of the most noble of purebloods. But she swallowed her fear.

'I totally sympathise you but it's been five months now. She wouldn't have wanted you to be like this.' Her voice calmed down a little; trying to coax him into believing her. He looked away from her but her words to awaken some other emotion.

'You don't know anything. It was all my fault.' He closed his eyes fighting back the memories and tears. 'Mother was only trying to save me... She...'

All the emotions locked within him in the past months began to leak out of him. As a member of the Kuchiki purebloods, his uncle ordered him not to show any weaknesses. This meant no crying especially in front of others. But, in this moment, nothing else mattered. Not being able to grief was like he was disregarding his mother.

_Oka-san, why did you leave me?_

Unsure what to do as he emptied his tears in her presence, she looked to the floor. 'Byakuya, she sacrificed herself so that you could live on. Don't blame yourself-'

'It should have been me who died! Oka-san...'

She widened her eyes. It was good that he was finally opening up to someone rather than be weighed down by all that grief welled up inside him. However, the loss was really taking a toll on him. He was beginning to hate himself.

_Would he hate himself so much as to... do something stupid?_

'Maybe if I took her place-'

Again, he found himself at the receiving end of Rukia's violence. This time she had shoved him into the pond; the symbol of his mother.

'What'd you do that for? You...' He guzzled some of the water whilst waving his arms in the air in order to latch onto something for support. He began a slight coughing fit but managed to stand in the shallows. He brushed his face with his hands, an attempt to stop the water from dripping in his eyes.

'Will you wake up already?' she bellowed. No, she didn't have soothing words. No, she didn't have jokes. All she had was fighting talk.

'Pull yourself, you idiot.' Byakuya looked up at her. For a small child, she had a big voice.

'You're Kuchiki Byakuya, for god's sake! You have the purest of pureblood. One day you're supposed to lead us. Look at the state of you now!'

She totally disregarded the evil stares he was giving her; the certainty of getting punished for her actions; that her words were hurting her friend. This was her only friend. She wouldn't know what to do if she lost him. It was important to pull him out this state, for his sake, for her sake.

'What will your mother think of you, hey?' she questioned hoping he could come to his senses soon.

_Oka-san_

Byakuya widened his eyes. Finding the atmosphere a little awkward, he looked to the side. In spite of her aggressive treatment, she was right. His mother would have wanted to see him become the leader of all vampires; all purebloods. Years, she spent educating him, nurturing him, shaping him to be the powerful being he was destined to become. Instead, he was acting like a lost puppy. He lost all focus, control and faith. That was not the son he was. It slowly became clearer for him. From today onwards, he would pick himself back up and prove that his mother did not die in vain. She had to protect him because he was weak. If he did not want anyone else he held important to die because of him he would have to become stronger.

Slowly he held out his palm to Rukia. His eyes no longer filled with anger or sadness. A weak smile appeared on his face appreciating her efforts.

'Could you lend me a hand?' he asked so he could reach out of the pond.

She smiled and washed over in relief. The old Byakuya she knew was gradually returning. She placed her hand into his hold but he immediately tugged her down into the waters. She fell head first into the shallows where it was slightly muddy. Her entire body was wet. After trying to comfort him he tricked her in order to carry out his revenge. That made her incredibly furious.

'You ungrateful cry baby!'

A small giggle emerged from Byakuya. She turned over to sit up straight and raised an eyebrow, enraged further. 'What's so funny?'

Her face was splattered with mud. Some of the water grass managed to tangle its' way through her hair. Perhaps the most amusing thing was seeing her with slugs sitting on her head and clothes. It made him laugher harder.

'Why you...!'

Completely irritated by his mockery she stood up to splash handfuls of water his way. He began to enjoy annoying her. It made him laugh and soon he returned the favour. They continued their water fight as the slight tension faded and all you could hear were fits of laughter. Both enjoyed the company of one another. It seemed like it was a millennia ago when he genuinely felt happy.

Byakuya forgot his grief. This idiot who physically abused him, ruined his clothes, spoke of his beloved mother so casually, did all of the above only to take his mind off his loss. She was very brave, like none other.

_Thank you, Rukia. You brought me back from the depths of despair and brought me joy. You allowed me to smile again..._

* * *

Byakuya smiled as he recalled the past, the day that he and Rukia established a true bond. It was a genuine bond unlike the those which other females claimed to have with him. Rukia was most definitely _unique_. His smile widened without him realising it. Looking to his side, he noticed the small snowflake motif on the door he stood next to. Subconsciously, he had walked past his own room and found his way to Rukia's room.

_I doubt she's awake at this time of night..._

Having made up his mind to speak to her the next day instead he moved a little away from her bedroom door. Then he heard a muffled sound behind the oak door. It was hard to tell what it actually was which sparked the curiosity within him. His fingers lifted towards the door knob.

'Do refrain from going any further.'

The hallway was only lit by a few dimmed light bulbs scattered widely apart but Ulquiorra was clearly making his way down towards Byakuya. He was powerful enough to mask his presence like all purebloods.

'I was just going to check on how she's recovering,' Byakuya offered. He removed his hand from the handle but remained standing by the door.

'She's fine. Let her sleep without disturbance.'

For a moment, the two purebloods remained still and just stared at each other. There was so much tension in the air even the lights began to flicker. It was almost as if their inner powers were conflicting with one another. But none of their facial expressions gave away their inner thoughts. Both were strong purebloods but fighting amongst each other was not allowed. If found out and there wasn't a reasonable explanation, Aizen would not be happy. And no one wanted to experience Aizen's wrath.

Byakuya looked over to Rukia's room once again. He could not hear anything else from within nor could he sense any foreign presence. He turned round and began to walk back to his room without paying any attention to Ulquiorra.

Although Byakuya retreated back to his own room Ulquiorra still remained outside Rukia's room. Quietly, he leant on the door and folded his arms. No one could enter or leave without his permission.

_I'll swear to devote my entire life to guard you, Rukia._

He closed his eyes determined to spend the entire night there.

_Sweet dreams, Rukia._

* * *

'Kaien-sensei!'

Rukia gasped and jerked awake. She had another one of her nightmares. The same one had haunted her every night for the past month. Images of him being attacked and finally being stabbed in the heart kept reoccurring ever since she heard of his death.

Her tears began again. It pained her. The teacher who educated her for many years, who sparred with her on numerous occasions, who treated her kindly throughout had left her without warning. Her grief drove her to isolation. When the pain was at its' worst she would turn to alcohol hoping it would dull the pain but sending her further into depression instead.

Eventually, she stopped crying and wiped away her tears. It was enough. She had done enough crying. It was not in her nature to continue sitting round doing nothing. Pushing her bed covers and all the doubts away from her, she rose to her feet.

Some voices came from behind the door but Rukia ignored them all. She collected her sword from her night table and without a moment's hesitation she ran out of her room and leapt off the balcony. Her eyes were held shut as she plummeted down from the five-storey castle. At the last possible moment, timing it to perfection, she executed a forward somersault before landing in a kneeling position at the bottom of the castle. She opened her violet eyes shining brightly under the moons' reflection ready with her resolve.

'Kaien-sensei, I _will_ avenge you...'

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Yeah, I know, it's another slow chapter. But I thought it was important to inject a bit of realism and explain why Byakuya seems to treat Rukia differently when he can pick and choose other women.

**I found 2 different spellings for Ulquiorra's last name and weren't which one was right so apologies if it's incorrect.**

**Anyways, it's my first fanfic so welcome all reviews. Please be gentle... Ja **


	3. Pathetic Human

**Hey there here with another update! Nathalie Shiffer, 1superkawaii, epic unicorns, Vicky, rinakatorseh, , thanks for the reviews! To be honest, I did lack motivation this week so your reviews really did help xxx**

_**Chew**_** on this **

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Insignificant Human

'Shishou!' Ichigo pleaded on his hands and knees. He bowed his head until it touched the grassy plains.

'For the last time, Kurosaki-kun, I do not accept apprentices anymore. I'm retired now,' he sighed.

'Please, Shishou,' he finally looked up, 'I will train night and day. I will do everything you say and give it my 110%! Please guide me in becoming a soul reaper.' He bowed again.

An organisation called the Soul Society was created many years ago. A few rare humans were picked in order to train and become soul reapers. Only those who were extremely strong and possessed rare talent were chosen. Their main duties were to protect their designated area and the citizens within it from vampires. They were to slay vampires on sight and send their tainted soul back to Hell. Soul Reapers were to eliminate all threats to human society at all costs even if it meant laying down his own life. Everything was sacrificed for the greater good.

'Shishou,' Ichigo continued to plead with his face still in the dirt.

Urahara Kisuke was arguably one of the most famous soul reapers. With extraordinary powers and immense scientific knowledge, he was feared by many soul reapers as well as vampires. However, he suddenly retired from service ten years ago. Now, he was just a mere civilian living in a little house in a remote village and selling candies for a living. It felt like such a waste. He lost all connections with the Soul Society but was still followed by a few loyal subjects.

'Kurosaki, didn't you hear, Urahara-sempai has retired,' Ishida said as he pushed his glasses along the bridge of his nose. 'Go home.'

'But-'

'Kurosaki-kun, you are weak,' Kisuke peered from under his green and white striped slipper hat. 'You are not cut out to become a soul reaper. With a vessel like yours you wouldn't stand a chance against enemies.' He turned away from the front garden and began to stroll towards his house.

'Shishou, I'm rather strong despite my appearance. I'll show you if you just give me a change!' Ichigo was not giving up. It took him years to search high and low for the former soul reaper. Now that he had finally tracked him down he wasn't going to let a few scolding words waver him.

Kisuke sighed. Despite his retirement, he was often hassled by several hot-headed enthusiasts promising to devote everything and anything to become a soul reaper. But when they couldn't cope with merely a few days of training they scrambled back home. None of them truly wanted to fight evil or save humanity. They all just wanted to make a name for themselves, show off in front of friends or even to just do something to pass the time because they were bored elsewhere. He hadn't met anyone who was genuinely serious and he sooner lost hope in finding a true apprentice he could pass on all his skills and wisdom.

'A chance...?'

He held his oriental white fan over his face as the wind blew against him swaying his green robes side to side. A little idea was coming to him. He took another moment to think before he turned his head slightly back towards Ichigo.

'I'll give you one chance to prove your strength-'

'Sempai!' Ishida was shocked that Kisuke was so easily persuaded. Kisuke raised his hand a little as if to stop Ishida going any further.

'Yes, Shishou, anything!' Ichigo looked up delighted to no end.

'If you pass I will break precedent and accept you as my first ever apprentice.'

Ichigo grinned at the thought. It was an absolute honour to become Urahara Kisuke's apprentice let alone his _only_ apprentice. He was willing to do anything this man would tell him. He commanded so much respect.

Ishida widened his eyes. He had followed Kisuke for 15 years ever since he was little. Still, he was only an assistant. Never did he get a chance to become a soul reaper himself. Now, this knucklehead was being given the opportunity and he barely had to lift a finger. His brows furrowed, clearly he was annoyed; envious even.

'But if you fail-'

'I won't fail, Shishou,' Ichigo cut in. His resolve was determined.

'_If_ you fail,' Kisuke continued, 'you may never bother me again. What do you say?' Ichigo nodded eagerly.

'Well then,' he nodded towards the left, 'you see that post?'

Either side of the small path leading up to Kisuke's house stood two large red pillars. Both of which were 15 feet high yet possibly no wider than a lamp post. Originally, they were supposed to be used for a sign post but then got abandoned as it was too remote a place.

'Climb up to the top of that post using only your bare hands. Then balance on the top with one hand until dawn.'

'Huh?' Ichigo puzzled over the strange request. However, he was aware of Kisukes' ludicrous training. It was very well known.

'It proves to me your strength and stamina. You need both to become a real soul reaper.' Kisuke closed his eyes and turned towards his house again.

'I will be watching at all times.' He then began to walk away. Ishida smirked and quickly followed his senior back into the comfort of their home.

_I knew it. Urahara-sempai is only toying with him. There's no way that he'll even last a minute up there!_

'Bu-but...' Ichigo looked at his task, to his master and then back to his task again. Just the mere thought of the task was making him sweat. The sheer height of the pillar was daunting enough. Even if he made it to the top there was still three hours until dawn. Three hours he would have to spend balancing. Three_ long_ hours...

_Is that even possible?_

He took another glance at his disappearing master and took a deep breath.

_You can do this, Ichigo. This is a once in a lifetime opportunity..._

* * *

_Kaien-sensei, I will not let you die in vain._

Rukia ran as fast as her legs would carry her. If any of the purebloods discovered what she was planning to do she'd be in a lot of trouble. It was essential that purebloods didn't get drawn into unnecessary battles since there weren't many of them around anymore. But she didn't care. Her honour, her pride, her teacher was more important right now. She knew who her opponent was. It didn't matter that she was no match for them. It didn't matter if she died in the process of her vengeance. Kaien, who taught her everything she knew, everything she was, was killed by the hand of a soul reaper; a despicable human.

_Urahara Kisuke_

His name was permanently etched into her. The name tasted so bitter she could hardly speak it. She'd sooner spit on it. She would never forgive him not even when her sword finally pierces his heart. All she'll do is look down his corpse and smile hoping Kaien would rest in peace.

_Kaien-sensei_

* * *

Over two hours into his training, Ichigo finally managed to pull himself up to the top of the pillar. After several failed attempts, he managed to grasp the perfect technique which was to transfer his energy to the soles of his feet and using it to grip the pillar as he gradually walked up it. This alone drained half of his power. The side effects showed as he wobbled furiously whilst he continued to balance his six-foot frame on one hand. He could feel his body about to waver.

_No, I can't fail now! It's almost dawn!_

Sweat trickled all over his body. Veins throughout his body were strained. Occasionally, he switched hands to support his entire weight but now that tactic was not working as his hand shook violently. The muscles in it began to twitch uncontrollably from the aching pain. His legs in the air were swaying off balance.

_No, just a little bit more..._

* * *

A heavy thud echoed a little ahead of her. It startled her but she carried on running none the less. Rukia towered over the limping body which curled up in a foetal position. He was even whimpering in pain like a baby. She narrowed her eyes.

_Pathetic human_

She kicked at the male out of spite. Many vampires were killed by humans without mercy, without hesitation. Her beloved sister disappeared many years ago. It was presumed that she was killed by a soul reaper. Although no evidence ever supported this rumour, Rukia always believed it to be true. She stared hard at the barely conscious guy and unsheathed her sword.

_I hate humans_

As she pointed the blade towards him he rolled over and groaned. He opened his eyes slightly but enough for her to recognise his face. The face that was so familiar. His eyes were a golden brown, his hair was bright orange completely different in comparison but there was no doubt that his face belonged to her teacher. He was like a young replica of Kaien. Her eyes widened and her body trembled without her permission. Snapshots of her and her late teacher flashed through her mind. All of which were joyful and full of admiration.

_Kaien-sensei..._

* * *

Ichigo found himself collapsed on the grass. His weak body had given up and gave into the incredible ache in his muscles and joints. He couldn't stop the groan he made as he winched in pain. His body hurt all over and his right leg felt like it was in a knot. He had used up all his energy and felt like he was dying.

_Maybe I went too far..._

Slowly, he opened his eyes to see a figure peering down at him. It was a slight blur but he could definitely tell it was a girl. Her bright violet eyes stood out from the darkness of her shadow. It was mesmerising; drowning even. Or maybe he was just dying from the pain. His eyes felt heavy as they started to close.

'No, don't go! Please...' That was all he heard before he passed out from exhaustion.

* * *

Rukia studied the man carefully. His right leg seemed to be broken probably the result of some blunt force. He was pale, drained from all energy. Without any energy his heart wouldn't function well nor would his leg heal. His eyes drew a close. It was like her teacher was slipping away from her all over again.

'No, don't go. Please...' she pleaded as she knelt next to him close to tears, 'Kaien-sensei!'

Panic took over her when his conscience disappeared. Her tears began to escape her. She lost her grip on reality as she tugged at Ichigo's white t-shirt, gently shaking him to wake up.

'Kaien-sensei! Don't leave me!'

She sobbed as she buried her face into his chest. It was lean and warm just like her teacher's. Then she smell hit her. This was the scent of a human. It was most definitely not her teacher. He was dead. Aizen had confirmed it himself despite the absence of a body. Of course there wouldn't be a body. They turned to ash once they died. He was gone. Kaien was gone.

She sat up straight looking at the man. On a closer examination there were subtle differences. Kaien had brown hair with dark brown eyes. This man seemed much younger too. But his face... He still looked very much like her teacher. She thought maybe it was a reincarnation but then Kaien only died a month ago. There was also no denying this was a human. He could have been a soul reaper too. Why else was he at Urahara Kisuke's territory? Vampires were ordered to kill any soul reapers on sight. There were no exceptions. Each soul reaper was a threat and had to be executed. Rukia stared hard at Ichigo.

_This is NOT Kaien-sensei. THIS IS NOT KAIEN-SENSEI!_

Eventually, she picked up her sword again. She was shaking again. How could she kill her teacher? She missed him incredibly. She grew so cold without him. Now, fate had seemed to hand her a second chance to be with Kaien. Her heart pumped faster as the sweat around her forehead grew. Unfortunately, he was a human. They were sworn enemies. He probably hated her kind anyway. They all pretty much did.

_What if I turn him? I wouldn't have to kill him if he was one of us..._

Her eyes wandered over to his neck as she inched closer to him. Purebloods were not supposed to turn humans because of the blood contamination. Usually, mixed-bloods would turn humans in order to increase mixed-blood population since majority of the purebloods would not feed them. Her breath was irregular as she bent her head over his pulse point.

_Kaien-sensei..._

* * *

'Urahara-sempai!' Ishida bellowed as he stormed into the bed chamber.

At first, he was surprised to find it empty but then noticed a figure standing amongst the shadows by the window. Both could smell the blood in the air and it was very close. As they were trained to hunt vampires it was essential for them to recognise blood. This blood scent was extremely fresh, extremely close.

'Sempai, should we...'

Kisuke raised his hand to prevent Ishida from interfering. Ishida widened his eyes as he saw a wry smile coming from Kisuke behind his fan. His eyes continued to focus on outside and never acknowledged Ishida. The smell of blood was so rich.

'How interesting...' He smiled a little more. 'Ichigo may be of some use after all...'

* * *

Rukia squeezed a few more drops of blood from her wrist before wiping away the excess off Ichigo's lips. It was decided that she wouldn't turn him after all. She didn't know this man. She didn't know him at all. Who was to say that he wouldn't turn on her when he woke up? No, she decided to befriend him first. Although she knew she was not permitted to associate with humans, he looked so alike Kaien, it seemed that he was still alive within him. Without giving it any thought she had fed him her blood. It was the key to power and regeneration. It was healing his leg and restoring his energy in no time.

Ichigo groaned as he slowly opened his eyes again. A rush of energy surged through his body pumping his heart a little bit faster than normal. He opened his eyes fully and sat up. He suddenly felt alert forgetting all his previous pain.

'Where am I?'

He looked around and found those beautiful eyes again. They were so wide and so full of emotion. She smiled lightly at him.

'Who... who are you?'

'My name's Rukia.' It was a lovely name.

'I'm Ichigo... I err...' He seemed a little lost.

'Are you feeling better?' she asked genuinely out of concern.

'Huh?' Then he remembered about his injuries. He gripped his right leg surprised that there was no pain at all. He felt so_ alive_.

'Come to think of it, I feel great.' He looked at her in puzzlement. 'Did you heal me?'

Rukia hesitated for a moment. She didn't want him knowing she was a pureblood vampire and used her blood to save him. In fact, she didn't want him knowing she was a vampire at all. Perhaps, if they grew close as friends she might tell him. She just didn't want to run the risk of losing Kaien again. She smiled weakly.

'Wow! You have great healing powers! Are you some sort of medic soul reaper?' Ichigo babbled on.

'Eh...'

'Kurosaki-kun, are you ok?'

Kisuke was standing right behind them. Rukia trembled slightly. She hadn't noticed his presence at all. Her inner self laughed. How could she possibly think she could challenge the most powerful soul reaper known today?

_What a fool I am._

'Shishou, I...' Ichigo trailed off. He did not fulfil his task. It was hard for him to accept the reality.

'I failed. Perhaps, I'm not destined to be a soul reaper after all,' he said as he held his head low. He felt deflated and somewhat ashamed, but most of all he felt useless.

Rukia flinched a bit. It was uncomfortable to know that Ichigo was training to become one of her top enemies. Fate was such a cruel a thing at times.

'Oh, I wouldn't quite say that.' Kisuke offered his brightest of smiles.

'Huh?' Ichigo looked up.

'Perhaps I could reconsider in training you as my apprentice.'

Rukia widened her eyes. This was turning out to be a nightmare. Her blood was already boiling at the sight of Kisuke. It took so much will power to stop herself from tearing into him.

'Really? But I failed...' Ichigo was so surprised. He totally didn't expect the sudden change of heart.

'Perseverance and determination are two important key qualities to a soul reaper. Sure, you are weak at the moment but I see potential in you. I will train you to be one of the best soul reapers.' Kisuke flashed another beaming smile.

'Really?' Ichigo jumped to his feet in excitement. His dream had finally come true. And to hear that he had _potential_ was overwhelming.

'Sure,' Kisuke replied and Ichigo continued to jump up and down in joy around him.

Kisuke turned to Rukia. The smell of blood was definitely here despite her efforts to cover up the wound. Rukia noticed the intense look he was giving her as he gingerly approached her. She wanted to back away even just a little but she couldn't move. The immense energy released by Kisuke was so great it scared her stiff. Her fear doubled as he bent down towards her.

_Does he know I'm a vampire...?_

He paused to look at her for a moment. He gave her a wry smile and held out his hand to her. 'Rukia-chan, right?' Rukia widened her eyes; unable to form any words. 'Please.'

For a moment she hesitated but then took his hand as he helped her up to her feet. She hated the fact that she was so close to him yet she didn't have the power to kill him. It made her feel sick.

'Perhaps we could do with your medic skills too, Rukia-chan?'

It made her feel sick. He made her feel sick.

* * *

She had her long purple hair flowing freely over her shoulders. Her curvy, tanned body glowed in just her underwear. She posed on her side maximising her cleavage even more.

'Yoruichi, what are you doing in my room?' Byakuya asked in a cold and flat tone despite the seductive display.

'It's a full moon tonight,' she purred as she played with her hair in between her fingers.

When there was a full moon, it brought the female vampires into season. They were at their most fertile. A full moon only comes three or four times a year and only lasts for three days. So many vampires would make the most of this time to conceive.

'So?' He continued his stoic appearance totally disregarding her half naked body in his bed.

'I heard about the Coalition Order. Thought I might be of service,' she teased as she got off the bed and began to walk towards him.

'Shouldn't you be in Aizen's bed?' he retorted.

'Oh?' she stood in front of his stroking his chest. 'Jealous, are we?'

He took hold of her hand and removed it away from him. 'It's more of a reminder of your place.' He walked past her not at all interested.

'So you prefer that dwarf over me?' she hissed.

'GET OUT NOW!' he barked.

Anger glowed in his grey eyes. No one was allowed to mock Rukia even if it was Aizen's lover. He didn't care if he offended her. She crossed the line. It irritated him further when she didn't move a muscle.

'Get out before I throw you out!' It was so unlike him to raise his temper but his protective side kicked in when it came to Rukia.

Eventually, she left him in peace, for now. He was exhausted. Every night since the order was passed he would get sexually harassed by female vampires offering him their _services_. Even if he locked his door they would find a way in. It was impossible. He just wasn't attracted to any of them.

_Soul mate..._

* * *

Yoruichi gave a wry smile as she left. There was no way a plain, flat-chested dwarf could compete against her. Many men lusted after her even Aizen wanted her.

_Byakuya, you will be mine._

* * *

'You idiot, this is my room not yours!' Rukia screamed.

Byakuya jerked awake from the noise. He came to find Rukia but she was out again so he decided to wait for her. The thought of more female vampires pestering him drove him out of his own room. He decided it was probably safer to stay in her room. He wasn't entirely certain when he fell asleep in her bed.

'Get out!' she climbed onto the bed and pulled his arm.

'Rukia, what's wrong with you?' he asked as he rubbed his eyes. He was so much stronger than her he barely moved.

'What's wrong with _me_? What's wrong with YOU? This is my room.'

She gave up tugging at him. She was too weak. Almost all her energy was drained. She collapsed onto the bed next to him. For the past few days she had snuck out to train with Ichigo. Deep down she knew she shouldn't have but she couldn't stop herself. She closed her eyes in an attempt to get some rest. She was utterly exhausted.

He noticed how pale she was. It was from going out during the day lately. It was discouraged. Vampires were weak in the daylight, therefore, making them more vulnerable. The risk was not worth taking especially if you were a pureblood. He knew she sneaked off somewhere in the day but she wouldn't tell him where. She never used to keep secrets from him. It stirred up something deep within his heart. He couldn't quite work out what it was but he was curious to find out where she'd been going.

'You need to feed,' he said as he brushed her stubborn bang away from her face.

'I'm fine. I just need to rest.'

She tried her best to sleep and ignore his shuffling. Her eyes opened as he climbed over to straddle her. Her eyes were glued to him as he began to undo his black shirt exposing his neck. Her cheeks began to heat up as he continued to loosen his buttons until finally he shrugged off his shirt entirely. A firm, smooth chest sat in front of her.

'Wh-what are you doing?'

She knew that was a stupid question. It was obvious what he was doing. He was teasing her again. He enjoyed teasing her because he knew it annoyed her. They've spent most of their days trying to annoy each other. It was only harmless play fighting but Byakuya seemed to tease her more and more often nowadays. He moved his head to the side slightly pushing his neck towards her.

'Rukia, eat me...' he whispered in a low husky voice.

'What?'

She widened her eyes and more so when his eyes met hers. His long silky back hair dangled above her almost tickling her face. Their faces were so close she could feel his hot breath on her lips.

'Feed from me, Rukia,' he pushed his neck towards her again, 'or I'll tell Aizen you've been wandering about during the day.'

'I...' she stuttered.

'Rukia, bite me,' he encouraged. More accurately, he was begging for her to bite him.

She titled her head upwards as she drew her fangs out. She couldn't risk Aizen knowing. He gasped slightly when she pushed her tongue along his neck. It was to slightly numb the pain before she pierced his flesh. He groaned from the mixture of pain and pleasure. He pushed his body into hers without realising it as she carried on sucking on him.

_Rukia, only you are allowed to drink my blood... _

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So I have to stop it there. My longest chapter to date. So bonus points to Nathalie Shiffer for mentioning Ichigo. How did you guess he was going to appear?

**Anyways, it's my first fanfic so all reviews welcomed. Please be gentle. Ja x**


	4. First Assault

**Hey people! Here with another update. rukiharem, epic unicorns, 1superkawaii, lemonorangevanilladrops, sagitariusleo, loveyouso, cima1305 and Vicky, thank you all for your reviews! Also, thanks to those who faved this story and added it to your alert list! Special thanks to 1superkawaii for making me a fave author! You're too kind! The more reviews I get the more motivated I get. So much appreciated! Cima1305 you're spot on about the mysterious nature of the story. Might just have to keep you guessing a little bit more...**

**Anyways, on with the chapter**

**Here's your next **_**feed**_

**Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach, just this plot**

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First Assault

Among the shadows of the halls stood two figures intertwined with each other. His lips ravaged hers as he urgently opened up her black shirt. He tugged at the fabric so hard he loosed the buttons which rained onto the floor. Short gasps escaped her as he gave her rough, chaste kisses from her face to her throat. His teeth ripped into her flesh without mercy as his hands roamed over her plump breasts. He moaned at the squishy feel. Both his hands were unable to stop squeezing her flesh. Such curves were just irresistible.

_All this belongs to me_

'Grimmjow-kun...' she panted as she threw her long flowing orange locks back; riding with the pleasure waves.

He moved away from her blood to lick her bottom lip. The fire within him was burning so great her blood would not satisfy him. He wanted her body. Wandering hands travelled along her thigh, under her red skirt and reaching for her knickers.

_I must have you. _

Slow rubbing motions over her lacy knickers sent shivers to her core. It was like a sudden rush of electricity had flowed within her making her gasp urgently. Her back arched into the wall behind her. The coolness of halls finally reminded her of where they were. The halls of the purebloods bed chambers were poorly lit but they were still in an open area. They were exposed in an area where someone could have discovered them easily. Orihime's eyes widened as she tried to ignore the pleasurable ministrations.

_What if someone sees us?_

Sure enough they wouldn't get punished but the sheer embarrassment of someone seeing their explicit act was too much. It would soon be the hot gossip of the century. Then eventually everyone would know about her lack of discretion. Absolutely, _everyone_ would hear about it.

_What if Otou-sama finds out? He'd be so disappointed in me!_

Finally, she snapped out of her thoughts and severing all her desires. One hand pushed at Grimmjow's shoulder whilst the other squeezed gently at the hand that was under her skirt. It was her polite way of asking him to stop but he continued stroking at her womanhood.

'Grimmjow-kun,' she whispered as she squeezed his hand with a little more pressure. 'Grimmjow-kun, not...'

Her voice was ripped away from her throat when he pushed a finger against her knickers reaching her wetness. He began sucking at her blood again. The mix of pleasure and pain began to empower Orihime again. Then her eyes opened wide again as she could sense someone's energy approaching around the corner. Fear overrode all sensations as she began to tug his hand away from her core.

'Please, Grimmjow-kun, stop.' Still, he did not cease his assault. The presence was getting nearer. 'Grimmjow-kun...'

'If a lady says 'no' she means 'no'. Grimmjow pulled his head up to see who was interrupting him.

'Well, I do like an audience.' Grimmjow smirked.

'Ulquiorra-kun!'

Orihime glowed red and pushed Grimmjow's hand out from under her skirt praying Ulquiorra didn't see. She briefly glanced at him but it was hard to read Ulquiorra. His facial expressions were as placid as ever. Sometimes, it seemed to her that he was sad or even lonely. Not sure of where to look she decided to focus on the floor and held both her hands over her lap as if to cover the shameful act.

_He must think I'm sort of whore..._

The edge of her lips began to quiver. She was about to spill her tears. She hated to bring shame to her name; shame to her father. And Ulquiorra, her father's right hand man discovered her and Grimmjow fooling around so openly. She was certain he was going to expose her indecency to her father.

Grimmjow looked up and sighed in frustration. The fact that Orihime was so shy often irritated him. He did all the chasing even though she claimed she was in love with him. It took pretty much forever for her to allow him to kiss her. Now, six months into the relationship but still it wasn't a _sexual_ relationship. Of course, a young, hot-blooded, good looking man was frustrated. Any man would be even if he had all patience in the world and Grimmjow barely had any patience for anything. He gave one last death glare at Ulquiorra before he turned to leave.

Ulquiorra's eyes moved to the fragile girl again. 'You shouldn't waste your time on trash.'

She closed her eyes and bit her lip to stop herself from crying. All this was done in vain as streams of tears fell over her cheeks. It wasn't Grimmjow's fault. She only blamed herself for not having the will power to refuse him in such a place. There was no denying that she genuinely loved him. Despite the obnoxious persona, he was the one who saved her when she was attacked by a group of soul reapers. Her bodyguard had died instantly under the attack. Although Aizen's blood flowed within her, she always lacked the talent and skills to fight or even defend for herself. Alone, she was weak. She was utterly powerless. When she cried for help as she was on the edge of death, Grimmjow was the one; he was the _only _one who came to answer her prayers. In an instant, he managed to slay all the soul reapers threatening to end her life. He had nursed her bruises and grazes from the attack. From that day onwards, he had saved her and won her heart. Never would she forget that day. Never.

Unable to continue watching the girl breaking down, he began to resume his walk. As he approached her and swiftly walked past her, a wave of panic enveloped her again. In that moment she stopped crying and her head shot up.

'Ulquiorra-kun,' she gasped, finding it difficult to form the right words.

'Don't worry. I won't be informing Aizen-sama of this. Rest assured as he has more important things occupying his mind.'

Her eyes filled with surprise. It was an incredible relief to her. She had no idea of what Aizen would do if he was told. Although he was her father, she feared him incredibly. He was rather distant with her. There were so many things he kept from her. At times she questioned whether they were truly related. She did not look at all like him but she was told she resembled more of her mother. However, their personalities were completely different too. Where did the kindness, shyness and gentleness in her come from? It was most certainly not inherited from Aizen. Everyone knew that.

'Uliquiorra-kun...' she turned round to face him once again.

Although she understood he simply just didn't want to bother her father with small matters, he still was doing her a favour none the less. The least she could do was return the favour. He stopped walking but did not bother to look at her.

'Is there something I may be of service to you?' There was no harm in being slightly polite to the king's only daughter; only child.

'Thank you, Ulquiorra-kun for your discretion. I am extremely grateful. The other day, I overheard my father was talking to Yoruichi-san which may be of interest to you. As you are aware...'

'Please simplify, Orihime-sama. I have many matters to attend to.' A spark of annoyance reached his words.

'Ye-Yes, of course, Ulquiorra-kun,' she bowed immediately and blushed slightly with embarrassment. It was also known that she wasn't the most intelligent vampire either. She stood up straight to continue.

'It concerns Rukia-san. It...' The sudden sharp look Ulquiorra gave her startled her.

'What about her?' he urged.

'I-It has been noticed that she has been... _wandering_ about.'

'Wandering? What is meant by this?' he asked quickly yet trying to keep a plain expression.

'Forgive me, Ulquiorra-kun, I can't say more. I don't want to get into trouble with my father. But, please keep an eye on Rukia-san. She is walking in dangerous territory and my father will not act kindly towards any betrayal.'

With his eyes widened with worry, his stoic appearance failed slightly. Deep down, his heart was racing a little bit faster. He was fully aware of Aizen's temper. If a vampire betrayed its own kind, he would be tortured over and over for information. Once the traitor confessed he would suffer a long and painful death. A pureblood may be spared but there was no guarantee. He could not allow any harm to come to Rukia. She meant the world to him. Nothing mattered if she was not with him.

'Do take care of Rukia-san. She's a good friend to me.' She bowed again truly wishing he could help since she was not in such a position herself.

He turned round to leave. Now that Orihime mentioned it, he did remember Rukia leaving the castle often in the past few weeks. The thought of her being in danger caused him to quicken his footsteps. The thought of Aizen punishing Rukia made him run. He was unable to stay calm anymore.

_Rukia, where are you?_

* * *

Spring rain sprung out of nowhere. Rukia and Ichigo were only two miles away from Kisuke's house but then the rain grew heavy. He unravelled away from his brown leather jacket and held it over both their heads. Her eyes grew wide and unsure what to do.

'Come here,' he offered.

He pulled her closer to him so he could use his coat as an umbrella for them. A little smile crept over him when he saw her slight blush. Her eyes shied away from his longing gaze. It made him smile a little bit more.

_How adorable_

Over the past few weeks he spent nearly every day with her. A lot of the time she was merely there for moral support rather than physically help him train. However, he really appreciated her encouragement. As each day passed, she grew more and more beautiful to him.

'Ichigo...?' Rukia asked as she was a bit uncomfortable under his gaze. Her voice made him snap out from his thoughts.

'Right, let's run for it.'

They began speeding across the fields. He pushed Rukia closer to him under his jacket as the wind picked up blowing more rain against them. Splashes of mud worked over their shoes and legs but soon they were in the safety of the humble house. Rukia followed Ichigo into the kitchen where he then found her a tea towel.

'Here, use this to dry off.'

He knew his way round the entire house since he had moved in as soon as he became Kisuke's apprentice. It wasn't quite like a family but Kisuke spent a lot of time training him and teaching him more about vampires. The man was a true expert. He knew so much but there was still a lot that he wasn't sharing with Ichigo. For example, whenever he asked Kisuke about his retirement he would quickly change the subject or use light humour to divert the question. He acted like this with a lot of his questions.

Rukia sat down and took the tea towel and started rubbing her damp hair when she noticed an item on the table. It seemed like a short pole wrapped in white bandages.

'What's this?' she asked before giving Ichigo a puzzled look.

He walked closer to the strange item to pick it up. Carefully, he unravelled the bandages to reveal a sheathed sword. The cover was marked 'SS'. This was a sword from the Soul Society. It was a soul reapers' sword. Both their eyes widened as he gently removed the sword from its case. It glistened like a gem. He couldn't help but slide his fingers across the blade as if he was stroking a pet. He was amazed to finally set his eyes on such a sword.

'Beautiful, huh?'

Both of them were shocked to see Kisuke also standing in the room with them. They were so certain that no one else's presence was in the house. This man was frighteningly powerful.

'Shishou, is this sword...'

'It's for you.'

'Me?' asked Ichigo.

'Now that you're training as a soul reaper, you will need it.'

'But I already have a sword of my own.'

Ichigo looked at the sword again. There didn't seem to be much difference compared to his apart from being a little heavier. Kisuke snatched the sword away smoothly.

'This is no ordinary sword. It is made entirely out of silver.' He watched Rukia as she jerked in her seat. He couldn't help his creeping wry smile.

'Why is it made out of silver?' Ichigo asked.

'You can only kill a vampire if you pierce their heart with silver. They die instantly.'

It gave him some pleasure to see Rukia instantly turn white like she had just seen a ghost. This girl was not only unable to move under Kisuke's almighty energy but she was quivering with so much fear she was helplessly shaking. He was toying with her. He rather enjoyed the sight.

'I've slayed many vampires with this very sword.'

Rukia looked up in shock. It was possible that Kisuke had killed Kaien with the sword in front of her. She could almost see her teachers' blood smeared all over the blade. How close was she to the weapon? How close was she to the killer? Her eyes stretched further as she noticed Kisuke staring directly at her. His sinister glare pierced through her and twisted around her heart commanding her to stay in her chair. Every muscle in her froze. Her entire body stiffened.

_He knows. He's knows I'm a pureblood. I'm sure of it._

Kisuke tore his eyes away from her to focus on his apprentice. 'Now, I shall entrust this sword in your possession.'

It finally hit her. The reality finally hit her. Ichigo _hated_ vampires _especially_ purebloods. If he knew her real identity he _would_ kill her. Maybe there would be a moment's hesitation but still he would kill her. How could he forget that his mother, father, sisters, his entire family were killed by vampires? How could he forget the night that he almost got killed by a vampire too? How could he forget that purebloods were the creators of all vampires? How could he just ignore that _she_ was a pureblood?

_This is crazy. What am I doing here? This is NOT Kaien-sensei!_

* * *

Her footsteps echoed around the silence as she walked about the rooftops of the castle. Alone she stood under the clear night sky. Sharp gusts of wind circled around her waking her from her senses. The cool breeze was just what she needed. It made Rukia think carefully. What was she to do? Putting aside the looks Ichigo shared with Kaien. His personality was just as similar. Then there was the secret looks he gave her... She sighed.

_Stop thinking about him! This is the right thing to do._

This wasn't the reason why she was here tonight. Why was she here? A little note on her desk asked her to show herself. There was no signature but she recognised the penmanship. Such neat and elegant handwriting could only belong to one person.

She sighed again. 'How can you arrange to meet me and be late yourself? You idiot!' she huffed while looking up at the moon.

Out of nowhere, a pair of hands stretched over and wrapped around her waist and rested on her stomach. They pulled her back closer to a strong, firm chest. Byakuya bent his head round to push his mouth to her left ear.

'Who are you calling an idiot?' he whispered in a husky voice.

Having her there with him reminded him what happened earlier. Seeing Rukia smile so sweetly towards Ichigo kick started a burn within Byakuya. Seeing Ichigo stare at Rukia longingly enraged Byakuya further. Seeing Rukia get pulled closer to another man's chest made Byakuya tighten his hold on her. Seeing how she blushed at Ichigo made Byaluya's heart ache.

_Rukia._

He now understood all these feelings he secretly harboured. He teased her continuously only to get her attention. He only drank her blood so he could be closer to her. He wanted to be a part of her. Only she was allowed to drink his blood because he wanted to belong to her. He didn't like Kaien because he was jealous. He was jealous because Rukia held so much admiration for her teacher. All those feelings of jealousy awoke once more when he saw her with Ichigo. He was jealous because all these years he had developed strong feelings for her. It took all these years for him to finally see it; admit it. He pressed his body into hers more.

_Rukia, I know now. I'm in love with you. No one else can have you._

The moment he discovered his true feelings for his childhood friend he came up with a plan to seduce her; to make her his:

1) Shower Rukia with romance.

2) Drown her in a boiling pool of lust and desire.

3) Break down all her defences into a million pieces.

4) Taste her; devour her at your pleasure.

'Byakuya, what's wrong with you?' she asked taking a quick peek at him. He grinned as he pressed his face to her head.

'Are you... are you smelling my hair?' He grinned a little more.

_And to begin with the first assault..._

He straightened up slightly but still held onto her. Her eyes followed his to the sky. The confusion inside her began to grow.

'Look.'

'What exactly am I supposed to be looking at?' she asked. Although she enjoyed the peaceful night she couldn't help but wonder if Byakuya was planning something. 'Byakuya?'

'Just keep looking.'

A few moments later a shower of shooting stars came raining down from the sky. Tens, no hundreds, or perhaps thousands of glowing light whizzed around them. Rukia's heart jumped. Never had she seen a more beautiful sight. She quickly looked up at Byakuya giving him one of her brightest smiles. Then she soon returned to the skies scared that it was just a dream.

'Wow!' she gasped.

Byakuya wasn't really paying much attention to the shooting stars. He couldn't take his eyes off Rukia. So much happiness danced around her eyes. Her dreamy violet eyes shined under the moonlight. The beautiful smile on her grew wide. She dazzled.

_You're so gorgeous. I'll do anything for you. Anything._

The show had ended but she still seemed extremely happy. She still had her sweet smile on her face. She turned round and blushed a little to see Byakuya smiling at her. His face was barely an inch away from her.

'Rukia, do you know where shooting stars come from?' She shook her head.

'Plato once said that man and woman were created by God as one being. But then he separated them and cast them out from Heaven. Each time you see a shooting star that's one of them being thrown out by God. Men and women would spend their entire lives searching for their 'other half'; to become whole again.'

He paused and touched her forehead with hers. He closed his eyes savouring her closeness.

'Rukia, you _complete_ me.' She widened her eyes, not knowing what to say.

'Rukia,' he opened his grey misty eyes to stare deep into hers, 'you're what I've been searching for.'

With that he pushed his lips onto her small mouth. He tightened his arms around her again not willing her to leave. The desire inside him increased more and more. His heart pumped so fast and so loud it felt as though it was about to leap out of him.

_Rukia, I want you._

* * *

It was such a surprise for Rukia to hear such a romantic story from Byakuya. She felt her cheeks grow with heat as his forehead pressed onto his. Her eyes travelled to his lips for a moment. They were so close to her it was making her feel dizzy. She felt so warm in his arms. It was quite a different feeling than she had previously experienced.

_What is this I am feeling? Is there something wrong with me?_

'Rukia, you _complete_ me.'

Her eyes widened. The seductive, low voice reached into her heart squeezing it gently. Her heart started to race against her will.

'Rukia, you're what I've been searching for.'

Her mind blew away as soon as his lips met hers. This unbelievably handsome man was kissing her. It felt so strange but strangely in a nice way. Soft lips with the softest of touches.

_So soft..._

* * *

'Rukia,' he moaned as his kisses began to grow urgent. He wanted her to kiss him back. He wanted her, no; he _needed_ her to feel the same way. 'Rukia,' he moaned again trying to get her to respond.

Finally, she gave a quick kiss back but pulled slightly away. Despite this, Byakuya continued to kiss her. He brought out his fangs and bit his bottom lip. He smeared his bloody lip over hers tempting her into the kiss.

'Kiss me...'

* * *

She had given him a quick kiss back in order to find out if she wanted it. It felt rather strange. After all, this was her long time friend. Never, did she think of him in that way. He was handsome, heir to the vampire throne and every woman wanted him. She thought herself to be a plain, flat-chested and rather ordinary girl.

Then she smelt his blood. Rich, thick and sweet Kuchiki blood. It tasted like no other blood. He had rubbed it onto her lips and she began to lick it off.

_Delicious. More..._

He began kissing her again smearing more of his blood onto her mouth. The taste was so tempting she couldn't help but lick at Byakuya's lip. Before she knew it he pushed his tongue to meet hers and began massaging it. Her body shivered at the contact. This new wave of feelings was spiralling out of her control as her tongue stroked along his. She couldn't stop the moan escaping from herself.

_This feels so juicy._

Her eyes opened wide as she felt one of his hands squeezing her bum. It was then when she saw who she was kissing. Kuchiki Byakuya. Her_ friend_. The friend who always liked to tease her and play games with her.

_Is he playing games with me now? What am I doing? This is my friend!_

* * *

She broke roughly away from the kiss. It jerked their bodies away from each other. They both panted heavily; both exhausted from the heated kiss. Byakuya was surprised at the sudden stop. He noticed a slight hesitation in Rukia's eyes but still took a step to get closer to her. He wanted to taste her lips again. He wanted to taste _her_ again.

'No.' Rukia's firm voice made him stop moving.

'Rukia?'

She swallowed all temptation. 'No.'

**

* * *

**

Do you hate me for ending it like that? Well it wouldn't be believable if they just jumped into bed, right?

In case you wanted to know, the bit about Plato is found in one of his works, Symposium. The bit about shooting stars was just my idea though.

**Anyways, it's my first fanfic so all reviews welcomed. Please be gentle. Ja x**


	5. Illicit Thoughts

**Hey people! Sorry for the late update. It really worried me when I only got 5 reviews for the last chapter; the least out of all chapters. Thinking there must be something wrong with my writing I decided to spend more time on this chapter. In truth, I was a little scared to add another chapter... Anyways, hope you enjoy this one instead x**

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Illicit Thoughts

Flowers; the key to courtship. Roses; a symbolism of love and beauty. A thick wave of perfume filled Rukia's room as she eyed over all the flowers dotted around her. The entire room was bombarded with a wide range of colours. The flowers were everywhere in vases, in bouquets and arranged in bunches. Even the most cold hearted woman would be affected in some way by the overwhelming sight. Rukia was absolutely shocked. Her hand shook from the surprise desperately trying to read the note in it.

_My dearest, Rukia,_

_Rose are red, violets are blue._

_All I think of is you._

_Your kindess; your beauty shines brighter than our moon._

_Soon our love will bloom._

_Eternally yours,_

_Byakuya._

He was unsure as to what colour she preferred so he practically went with all of them. A key to the colours was also explained on the back of the note.

_Red = the burning __**passion**__ and __**desire **__you stir within me_

_White = the __**purity**__ of my devotion to you_

_Pink = great__** happiness**__ you bring me and I wish to give you_

_Lavender = the __**enchanting**__ beauty you hold_

_Yellow = your friendship is such a __**joy**__ to me over the many years_

Her eyes led to the red petals scattered all over her silk bed sheets. _Desire and passion_. On her _bed_. She shivered slightly. A warm fuzzy wave soared through her body. Heat crept over her face as she re-lived their kiss. In fact, she thought about it every day. It caused her so many sleepless nights.

_Why did he kiss me? No, why did __**I**__ kiss him? _

Her heart began to race again at the thought of those soft lips and his tongue dancing with hers. For those few seconds she had lost all her senses for the taste of his blood. The blood of a Kuchiki was the purest of all purebloods. They were the first ever vampires created. Nobody could resist such taste. _Nobody_. It was also the key to divine power. Only after a few drops of Byakuya's blood, Rukia could already feel her powers multiplying.

_Why did I...? Does that mean I...__**fancy**__ him?_

She even surprised herself for kissing him back. It didn't feel weird despite him being her best friend. Of course, she had fallen for him many years ago. He had a perfect complexion, chiselled body, deep somewhat seductive voice, tall and strong frame and silky smooth long black hair. To put it simply, he was _really_ good looking. His cool, sometimes arrogant attitude added to his appeal. Even Rukia couldn't deny it. Byakuya was hot. But she fell for him mainly because how close they grew. He treated her in a special way compared to all the other female vampires. It made her feel so warm inside. But she convinced herself he only saw her as a sister. She presumed he would never return her feelings so just remained silent locking all those feelings deep down. She feared it would ruin their friendship. Now, all those feelings were itching to awaken once again.

_Why would he like __**me**__ of all people anyway?_

She looked over to her mirror on her vanity top. Sure, she had dazzling eyes, perfect youthful complexion, thick glossy shoulder length black hair flicking out at the ends, and a slim figure with silky smooth skin. But, like most women, she saw many flaws in herself and magnified them. She greatly wished to be a few more inches taller. Her body could do with more curves. The sight of her own reflection caused her to frown.

On many occasions, she told herself she was not worthy of Byakuya. She always thought that he deserved a drop dead gorgeous vampire for a wife to match his good looks; his status. She would be of strong pureblood with incredible powers possibly even another Kuchiki. It was common for purebloods to intermarry to keep the bloodline strong. Rukia sighed.

_I'm none of those..._

Although she was a head-strong girl, every girl had their doubts on their own appearance. A little insecurity slept in every female. Rukia, like most women, failed to see how beautiful she really was.

Her eyes tore away from mirror and caught the sight of the picture frame next to it. It was a photo of her, Hisana and Ulquiorra. They were still little children posing around a park. The three were close with each other. It was a sad day for both of them when they lost Hisana. You could say Ulqiorra suffered more than Rukia. From that day onwards, Ulquiorra promised to always be there for her. He couldn't bear losing someone close to him again. It was only natural that they grew even closer. He placed her at top priority. Each night, he would check if she was alright. Then, he would give her a quick kiss on her forehead before leaving her room. It was as if he became her guardian angel. He loved her. She knew it. It was obvious. It was obvious to_ everyone_. She closed her eyes and sighed again. Things just got complicated.

_What do I do? What do I want?_

BE-BEEP. BE-BEEP

A text message was sent to her phone. Rukia sighed again after reading it.

_Things just got even __**more**__ complicated..._

* * *

Byakuya stretched out on his dark blue silk bed sheets. His arms were folded behind his head. It was near midday and all vampires slept during the day. However, he was still wide awake. Little over 20 hours had passed since the flowers were delivered to Rukia's room. Yet there was no response from her. He waited patiently for her to find him in his room. But as hours after hours passed by he was disappointed each time. Rukia filled his entire thoughts. He just couldn't rest' couldn't sleep. Every part of him wanted to find her but he didn't want to place more pressure on her. He wasn't going to demand an answer from her. A young love is fragile. Thinking back, he thought he may have rushed things a little by kissing her so suddenly. It was totally unlike his character. He usually stayed calm at everything. But the thought of her being with another man, losing her to someone else made him lose control of himself. He just had to let her know how he felt. He remembered the look on her face afterwards.

_Was she upset with me? Was she angry? _

He promised himself to take things slower so he didn't approach her. He waited for her to find him but she never did so he sent her flowers to coax a reaction. His heart ached to know how she felt; how she felt for him.

_What was her reaction when she saw the roses? What did she think? What is she doing now?_

His mind wondered around trying hard to picture Rukia. A little chuckle escaped him at the thought of her on the bed of roses he arranged. An ocean of red petals clothed her naked creamy skin. The sweet perfume wrapped around her delicious body. His mouth watered. Her hands pushed away the flowers as she cupped her own breasts and gently stroking them; squeezed them. One of her hands travelled southwards. Byakuya licked his lips as he imagined her pushing her finger in and out of her womanhood.

_Rukia..._

His body was tensing up as his thoughts of her became more passionate. The fire within him burned higher so he opened his evening kimono and tugged at his underwear. His mind only focussed on Rukia as he began to pleasure himself. Every day, he would do this. He knew he shouldn't but the thoughts of her got so much he just couldn't stop himself from these acts. Awarding himself a little harmless fantasy didn't hurt anyone. He imagined it was Rukia's hand stroking along his length. Her softl hand continued to jerk at him as he moaned.

'Uh..' Byakuya whimpered.

A moment later she removed her hand from his member only to replace it with a little lick at the tip. The thoughts of Rukia's hot tongue sliding up and down his length ever so slowly made him moan and pulled at his throbbing hardness more urgently.

His sensations soared higher through his dirty fantasy. Rukia's silky wet tongue began to lick faster at his member like she was eating a lollipop.

_Eat me, oh..._

His mind nearly exploded when she suddenly took him entirely in her mouth. His toes curled up while his hand pumped himself faster and faster imagining Rukia's head was bobbing up and down faster and faster sucking on his member.

'Ah,' he groaned as he climaxed.

He panted heavily as he rode out his orgasm. He was completely spent. Each day his fantasies of Rukia got more and more passionate. It first started off just picturing her naked. Then he would imagine her pleasuring herself. Now that wasn't enough he involved himself in the naughty thoughts. It was mirroring his growing lust. He wanted her. He wanted her body. He wanted his and her body to mould into one. Soon, his fantasies would not be enough to feed his hunger.

_Rukia, I want you so bad..._

* * *

BE-BEEP. BE-BEEP

Rukia's phone continued to go off. For the past few days she had resisted in seeing Ichigo. Although she was happy that her teacher could live on in Ichigo's image in a sense, that was enough. She didn't have to see him. It was comforting enough to know that he was well. But a deep sadness enveloped her whenever she remembered he was her enemy. She prayed that they would never have to cross paths.

_As long as I stay away from that everything would be fine...right?_

BRING-BRING. BRING-BRING.

Ichigo noticed her absence. She spent every day with him but she had not showed up for the fifth day. He called her; messaged her every day in order to find out more: -

_1. Hey midget, where are you? Ishida's licking my butt here!_

_2. Hey, when are you coming? Sorry I called you a midget. You know I don't mean it, right? Well maybe I do lol. Are you going to help me train today? Even Master's asking for you._

_3. Why aren't you returning my calls? Did I say sometime; do something to upset you? Let me know you're safe when you get this message, ok?_

_4. Oi, pick up the damn phone!_

_5. Rukia, has something happened? I'm really worried about you. Give me a call ASAP_

Now he was calling her again. Rukia signed and decided to turn off her phone completely. His constant messages were starting to break her resolve. The sight of all the roses in her room was also distracting her from sleep. She thought maybe some fresh air around the gardens would do her good but as soon as she opened the door she found a tall figure already next to it.

'Rukia-sama.'

'Renji?'

She lifted her eyebrows in mild surprise. Mixed-bloods were not really supposed to be around the purebloods' bed chambers unless it was on specific orders or due to something important. She noted the little tense expression on his face.

'Renji, how many times have I told you not to use the honorific suffix with me?'

'Sorry, Rukia.' He hesitated.

'What's wrong, Renji? Is there something I can help you with?'

Rukia didn't pay too much heed to the different class of purebloods and mixed-bloods. To her, they were all vampires. Vampires should look out for one another. It was like different teams working for the same company. The main thing was to act in the best interests of the company. Everyone worked to protect the entire vampire empire. Plus, she and Renji grew up together. She was rather fond him. They often fought and argued like siblings when they were young. Then they grew apart when they were adults. He distanced himself from her because she was a pureblood. He knew his place. The distance between them was big.

'Eh, I was wondering if I could have a word.'

'Yeah, sure,' she remembered all the flowers inside. 'Let's go out for a bit.'

'No!' She looked up at his sudden gasp. 'I mean... Could we talk in your room where it's private?'

Something was up. She could tell. He sweated easily when he was nervous and he was rubbing the back of his head. He always did that when he was hiding something. For years he couldn't mask this weakness. This red-headed dobe was so easy to read.

'What's going on?'

'Nothing!' He knew he answered that too quickly for it to be convincing.

'Listen, pineapple head, I'll ask you one last time, WHAT'S GOING ON?' He recognised the violent nature within Rukia.

'Never mind!' He turned around desperately trying to runaway but Rukia hooked her finger under his collar forcing him to stay.

'Going somewhere?'

'Eh...'

Renji continued to sweat and had no time to react as she pushed him to the ground and sat on him. He howled as she pulled at both sides of his cheeks.

'Rukia, you idiot! Get off me! Oi, oi!' He screamed when she pulled his long spiky red ponytail.

'Renji, tell me NOW.'

She yanked his hair again. The pain was unbearable. He was paranoid he was starting to go bald and used tattoos to cover up the bald spots. Now Rukia was threatening to pull out more of his hair.

'Ulquiorra-sama asked...'

'Huh?' she gasped at the name accidently pulling at Renji's hair at the same time.

'What did you say?'

'Ow-ow-ow! Rukia, please stop!'

'Renji!' She applied more pressure on her grip.

'Ulquiorra-sama told me to prevent you from leaving the mansion.' She relaxed her hold making Renji breathe a sigh of relief.

'Why would he do that?'

'I don't know,' he said as he collapsed his face onto the floor.

'Renji...' she pulled at his ear this time.

'Okay-okay! He heard that Urahara Kisuke was training an apprentice...' Rukia gasped and let go of Renji.

_Ichigo!_

'Said he was going to _take care_ of him. Whatever that meant.'

In a quick flash she stood up and started to run. She knew exactly what he meant. It meant he was going to kill him. She ran faster and ignored Renji shouting after her. As a mixed-blood, there was no way that he could outrun her.

_Ichigo... Please let me make it in time..._

* * *

Ichigo dialled the number but all he got was voicemail again. He was lying on his back in the training field. He spent hours there but he didn't manage to do any training since he spent most of his time worrying over Rukia. He huffed and tossed his phone somewhere in the grass. He barely knew this girl but couldn't seem to get rid of these thoughts of her. Maybe it was because she saved him. There was this indescribable _connection_ with her.

'Rukia, where are you?' he asked while he stared at the sky.

He was so lost in his thoughts he only managed to spot a big ball of green light firing towards him at the very last minute. He swung his sword in front of him to stop the attack. His inner energy flared out of his body into what looked like a black fire. He was slowly getting pushed back and his heels started to sink into the soil.

'Cero?'

Ichigo recognised the power. He read about it in one of Kisuke's research journals. Cero was a power used only by vampires. It is a build up of concentrated inner power shaped like a ball. The stronger the person is the greater the power.

The cero's power was too great and cut through Ichigo's powers exploding into him shredding his t-shirt entirely and burning his chest. The powerful impact threw Ichigo onto the floor several feet away. He lied on his stomach struggling to see a blurry figure approaching him.

'Vampire...?'

He coughed sharply. The pain was smothering him; choking him. His sword was blown away from him in the explosion but he could barely lift a finger anyway. Dust flew around everywhere making it even harder to see. A talk figure in white robes walked calmly towards Ichigo. He took his time fully aware that Ichigo was in no fit state to move.

A pair of black shoes stopped near him. Ichigo craned his neck forcing his head to look up towards his attacker. Ulquiorra's black cropped hair blew gently in the wind. He kept a cold exterior but his deep green eyes were piercing Ichigo full with threat. Ichigo groaned in pain.

_How can a vampire have so much power even in daylight?_

Ulquiorra stared down at Ichigo. For Rukia, he ignored the rules. For Rukia, he risked being under the burning sun. He wasn't going to let this man endanger Rukia. He wasn't going to let this man come between him and Rukia. This man was weak and ugly. This man was nothing compared to him.

_Impudent human _

Ulquiorra began to gather energy to form another cero in his palm. He was right in front of Ichigo. Such a close range hit would cause great destruction but still he wanted to create a big cero. The anger within him spurred him on. He wanted this man to suffer great pain. He wanted to kill this man. He raised his cero ready to aim at Ichigo.

'This ends here, soul reaper.'

A sudden light flashed past. The green cero erupted and blew a mushroom cloud of dust and soil up into the air. Ulquiorra glided back away from the explosion but he knew instantly that something was off. He recognised the energy.

_Rukia..._

Just before the cero reached Ichigo, Rukia used shunpo to flash step them both out of the firing range. She picked Ichigo up swiftly and placed him onto the grass a few feet away from the explosion.

_Thank goodness I made it just in time_

Burns, cuts and bruises covered his chest. No doubt his muscles and lungs also suffered from the first cero. He had already passed out so Rukia decided to feed him some of her blood just enough for him to recover a little.

A familiar sweetness lingered on the tip of his tongue. He remembered the taste from before but he wasn't exactly sure when. Slowly, he managed to open his eyes. Images were slightly blurry but those kind eyes only belonged to one person.

'Rukia...' He pushed himself to sit up but winced in pain.

'Don't move, you idiot! You're badly injured!' He rested on his back again. The sheer excitement of seeing her again showed in his smile.

'I feel better already.'

The shuffling of some footsteps caught the attention of Rukia. She stood up waiting for Ulquiorra. What was she to do? She could never turn against Ulquiorra but could she just stand there and let Ichigo die? Her brain twisted in knots unsure of her resolve. Her heart grew nervous the closer he approached them.

'Rukia run! He's a vampire!' Ichigo shouted.

He sat up and began to panic. Although he could hardly move he didn't want any harm to come to her. He'd rather sacrifice himself so she could run to somewhere safe.

'Haven't you noticed? So is she,' Ulquiorra retorted.

'Huh?' Ichigo gasped.

'What did you say?' He turned towards Rukia then back to Ulquiorra. Complete shock painted over his face.

'Rukia is a pureblood vampire . Belonging to the third most powerful bloodline. A beast in human form that feeds on blood for energy.' Ichigo shivered at the thought.

'A monster that will kill a human without hesitation just for a meal; to quench a thirst,' Ulquiorra continued. Rukia knew he was saying those words deliberately to provoke Ichigo.

'lt-'

'Is it true?' Ichigo interrupted quietly.

He looked calm but he couldn't bear to look at her. He knew the answer already. It was her blood he could taste. That was the _connection_ between him and her. Her blood allowed him to regenerate quickly. But deep down he wished it wasn't true. Rukia closed her eyes unable to mutter the words.

_He'll hate me for this_

'Tell me!' he shouted.

The silent treatment she gave him was pure agony. She jumped slightly at the sudden rage. Her eyes were wide with shock still remaining silent.

'Rukia, tell him who you are.' Was it an encouragement or an order from Ulquiorra? It was hard to tell. Most probably a bit of both.

'It... itoko-san...' she looked to the floor.

'What!' Ichigo gasped. 'He's... he's your...cousin?' Ulquiorra walked up to Rukia pulling her close to him shielding her away from Ichigo.

'She is my _fiancée._ Stay away from her...'

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Ooh a cliffee! So the mystery relationship between Ulquiorra and Rukia is finally revealed! What do you think of it? What do you think of the chapter? Let me know.

**I'll be spending extra time on training as I'm doing a charity run next Sunday but hopefully I'll find some time to write. Wish me luck! **

**All reviews welcomed. Ja x**


	6. Bound Duty

**Hey people! Sorry for the late update (again). I've got 2 more stories swimming around my head which is quite distracting. I posted one, Mark Your Territory, because I know this fic lacks some ByaRuki moments... for now. The other story was going to be another ByaRuki but now I'm not sure. I've grown to really like UlquiRuki and there aren't many of those fics around. But then I really love ByaRuki... Maybe I should have a vote lol**

**My sincere apologies to my chapter 4 reviewers. I forgot to thank them last time. So, Nathalie Shiffer, Cima1305, 1superkawaii, sagittariusleo and Vicky, thanks! Lots of hugs and kisses! Many many thanks to Nathalie Shiffer, rukiharem, 1superkawaii, Rukes, isaraaries, sepsis, xdayanarax, xlightningx, Vicky, Namine1993, CJ and Vicky73 for all your reviews for chapter 5! Loved them all! It means so so much to me! Special thanks goes out to 1superkawaii and Rukes for adding me as their fave author! (bows) And thanks to all those who added this story to their fave story and alert list! isaraaries, I don't want to give away too much but I'll just say Grimmjow is hiding a little secret... Vicky73, you are Vicky right? I updated this a little earlier for you ;) x**

**Thanks for the good luck wishes for my charity run. I managed, to this day, to raise near $250 for Cancer Research. I managed to run 5K in 36 minutes. Hopefully, I'll do better and raise more money next year! Heh**

**Anyways, on with the chapter. Hope I don't disappoint!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach just this plot (sorry I keep forgetting to add this in)**

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Bound duty

'She is my _fiancée._ Stay away from her...'

Rukia stiffened. The look on Ichigo's face was heart breaking. She just couldn't look at him anymore. She had lied to him on many occasions. On purpose. About _everything_. How could she look him in the eye again?

_I'm so sorry_

'Fi... fiancée?' Ichigo whispered under his breath.

It was just one word but still it was difficult for him to mutter. Not only was Rukia a pureblood vampire, the very being he most hated but she also_ belonged_ to another. He couldn't get his head around all that had just happened.

_Could this day get any worse? Tell me this is just a sick joke; a nightmare. Please let it be a nightmare so things would be normal again!_

He lifted his eyes to Rukia. She was hidden behind Ulquiorra but she had her head to the side staring at the floor anyway. Was she avoiding him? Why wasn't she saying anything? Ichigo needed to get some answers.

_Please, tell me it's not true, Rukia..._

'If you value your life you will stop looking at my future wife life that,' Ulquiorra warned as he stared harder at Ichigo.

_This man does truly look like..._

The moment his eyes met Ichigo's his blood began to boil. Ulquiorra saw that longing looking Ichigo gave Rukia. He knew there was some romantic emotion hidden in there. There was no way that Ulquiorra would allow that. No one else could have her.

'Come near her again and I'll definitely finish you off.'

'Itoko-san...' she whispered.

Ulquiorra twitched a little. Her voice was lifeless almost sad. Was she upset? Why would she be upset? Everything he did was to protect her; for her. He loved her. Couldn't she see that?

'Let's go home,' Rukia offered. 'Let me atone for my behaviour.'

If they didn't leave now she was certain that Ichigo would be killed. Ulquiorra barely lifted a finger and Ichigo was already ripped to shreds. Ichigo was no match for him and Ulquiorra spared no mercy for soul reapers. Kill all soul reapers on sight. That was one of the most important vampire rules and Ulquiorra didn't like to break rules.

'Very well,' he looked straight into Ichigo's eyes placing as much hatred as possible, 'I won't kill you,' he turned slightly towards Rukia, 'for now.'

'Why?' Ulquiorra looked back at the soul reaper.

'Why did you save me?' he directed to Rukia. 'Why didn't you just let me die?' Ichigo shouted.

Rukia finally met Ichigo's eyes. His anger took over his sadness. It was unbelievable that he, a soul reaper was saved by a pureblood vampire. They were enemies. How ironic? How humiliating?

_Unforgivable!_

'I...'

Her eyes glistened threatening to cry. She had not only hurt his feelings but she also hurt his pride. She knew he hated her.

'You irk me to no end,' Ulquiorra said calmly.

He raised his hand to the side ready to gather another cero until he saw a huge burst of yellow electricity flash his way. The power was great but Ulquiorra pushed it away to the side with just one wave of his hand. The bolt of light hit into a tree exploding into a huge fire roaring with rage.

_Way of destruction; thunder roar cannon?_

It was a magic spell. It was one of many weapons used by soul reapers. It was quite a high level spell. The user was more powerful, _much_ more powerful than Ichigo. One that did not have to read the incantation of the spell out loud yet still brought a big amount of energy. Ulquiorra looked up a little further ahead to where the spell came from. Two men stood in the near distance but he only recognised one of them.

_Urahara Kisuke._

No one moved for what seemed like years. Everyone was trying to guess their opponents' next move. Sharp winds blew against them fiercely but still no one moved an inch. Kisuke and Ulquiorra were both incredibly powerful men. Both names were famous amongst vampires and soul reapers but they both had someone they wanted to protect right next to them. Was it worth risking a fight? Neither man wanted to spill any unnecessary blood. Not right now anyway. Ulquiorra turned round and offered his palm to Rukia.

'Let's go.'

Rukia's eyes moved side to side from Ulquiorra to Ichigo then back to Ulquiorra. Eventually she nodded and folded her hand into his. It was warm and always gave her a sense of security but today she felt worried.

He could feel the slight shaking of her hand so he squeezed it tight with his as he led her away. Scared that she would change her mind he began to walk a little faster tugging her along.

'Rukia!'

Ichigo moved to get up but his muscles wouldn't listen to him. The cero did a lot of damage to his body. It couldn't work properly. Something deep down within him ached as he watched Rukia in someone else's hands and began to leave him probably never to return to him again. She paid no heed to his call. A twisting feeling began in the pit of his stomach.

'Rukia!'

Beams of yellow light circled Ichigo forming like a wheel around his body commanding every single muscle in his body to not move. His body froze completely. It would take a strong energy to counter attack the spell. Only then could the captor could break out of it.

_Way of binding; six rod prison of light_

'Ichigo,' Kisuke suddenly flashed to Ichigo's side, 'you are too weak.'

He looked towards the departing vampires. Perhaps the binding spell was a little too excessive but he wanted to be certain that Ichigo didn't move. He didn't want him ruining his plans.

'Surely even you know that you do not stand a chance against a pureblood, especially in your current condition?'

Ichigo looked to the floor. There was no denying it. He was useless. It was so shameful. He had trained for week but he couldn't even react to even one shot from a vampire. How could he carry out the simple duties of a soul reaper? He didn't even realise Rukia was a vampire. She was also in love with someone else.

_And to think that Rukia and I... I'm such a fool_

'Ichigo, would you want to get stronger?'

'Huh?' Ichigo looked up to his master.

'I promised to train you to be the strongest soul reaper and I will not fail you.'

'Master, I...' Ichigo hesitated. He lost all confidence in himself.

'Don't get depressed about it. Just get stronger.' Ichigo remained silent with his head hanging low.

'What an ungraceful scene.' A shadow towered over and stared at the sight of Ichigo's injuries.

_How ugly _

'So this is the secret weapon you were talking about, no?' Yumichika asked as he walked a little closer to them. A dark grin appeared on Kisuke's face.

_Indeed..._

Kisuke looked at the tattoos on his palms. The black ink etched firmly; permanently into his skin soiling his image for years. He hated it but then it did constantly remind him of his mistakes. He had to learn from it but for what price? He balled his hands into fists at the thought.

_Soon, I will have my revenge..._

* * *

'Byakuya was just teasing,' Rukia said nervously.

She shouldn't be nervous. She had no real reason to be nervous but Ulquiorra didn't look impressed when he saw all the roses in her room. Then, of course, there was the whole incident with Ichigo. For a strong law binding man, Ulquiorra also didn't like others breaking rules. And she just happened to break a very important law by associating with a soul reaper and more importantly, by saving him.

_Itoko-san must be mad at me_

Out of the blue he circled his arms around Rukia and pulled her into a hug. His hand lightly stroked her hair as the other hand rested on the curve of her back. Her head, buried into his strong chest and she could hear the smooth rhythm of his heartbeat. He closed his eyes trying to savour the closeness; desperately trying to hold onto it; hold onto her.

'Rukia, you're too kind.'

'I...'

She was rather puzzled as to what he meant. He leaned back to cup her cheek gently rubbing it. His intense eyes gazed right into hers. A faint blush started to grow on her.

'I know it's in your nature but your kindness would give people the wrong idea. You have to let them down gently.'

'Y-yes...' It meant that she had to reject Byakuya. It meant that she had to reject all other men.

'Good,' he said as he continued to stroke her hair. 'And you will not see that soul reaper again. Don't waste your time on such human _trash._'

'Itoko-san,' she sprung out slightly from the embrace, 'I just didn't want anyone to die because of me...' she meekly offered.

Ulquiorra frowned. The image of Ichigo suddenly appeared in his thoughts.

'I see, Rukia. That man does look a little like Kaien,' Rukia twitched a little, 'but this teacher complex you have has gone far enough.'

'Huh? Teach... teacher complex?' her eyes widened.

'I knew you looked upto him a lot like an idol but don't get confused. That was nothing but admiration.'

'I...'

Rukia just didn't know what to say. Did she really have feelings for Kaien? Sure, she really admired him but did she have any romantic feelings towards him? Was that why she acted the way she did with Ichigo?

Ulquiorra could see Rukia struggling with her feelings. Her eyes were always so expressive. She was still rather young and unable to hide her emotions but he liked that innocent nature of hers.

'Rukia, Kaien is gone, forget about him. Those feelings are not real. This,' he moved to hold both her hands in his; 'us, you and me are real. You and I _belong_ together.' He stroked his fingers lightly along face and rested them under her chin.

'Or do you want me to be all alone again? Should I lose you too?'

She looked into his eyes and recognised the sadness and loneliness. Every time she looked at him he always held those emotions. His life felt empty. Only she could fill that emptiness in his heart. She placed a delicate touch of a hand over his.

'It-'

'You said you...' he voice cracked slightly, 'you said you would be with me. Have you had a change of heart? Are you to abandon me?'

_Are you to break my heart once more?_

Those words made her heart feel heavy. It ached. She could feel his hurt. Many years he wondered about lost. She wanted to soothe his pain.

'Are you to abandon me like Hisana?'

He found it harder to breathe with every second. It scared him. Every part of him wanted her to stay with him; love him. Her rejection would probably kill him. It took all the courage in the world for him to fall in love again. What would he do if he lost his loved one again? Would he survive it?

Rukia enveloped him tightly in an embrace. She couldn't bear to see him so full of sadness. She hated herself for causing it. How she wished for all his pain to go away. Her love was the answer.

'I won't leave you,' she whispered as silent tears began to roll off her. 'I won't.'

'Rukia,' he held onto her tightly and rested his chin on her head, 'I love you.'

_Please stay..._

_Please love me..._

_Be mine..._

She shuffled a little in his arms trying to hide her tears. Was he saying it to her? Was he saying it to her because she looked so much like Hisana? Both sisters shared the same face, same hair, and same eyes. You could hardly separate the two just by looking at them.

'Do you love me?' Ulquiorra's voice hitched a little higher than normal. He was nervous or perhaps he was afraid of her answer. She was shocked; caught off guard from the sudden question.

'I... itoko-'

'Don't love me as a cousin,' Ulquiorra interrupted quickly. He hated the word. 'Love me as a man; as a _lover_.'

_A lover?_

Her heart raced ahead of her threatening to leap out from her throat. Louder and louder it started to pump. It was thudding so fast she was sure that he could tell she was shocked. What was she supposed to say? What was she meant to say?

_Duty. Honour. Pride... Love?_

She looked deep into those sad looking eyes of Ulquiorra. He was very lonely, and has been for these past years.

_Hisana, I will take your place and fulfil your engagement to itoko-san... It is my duty_

_

* * *

_

So is she wearing lacy or silk underwear? Actually, why does she have to be wearing

_**any **__underwear at all?_

'Byakuya, are you listening to me?' Aizen asked.

'Yeah, sure,' Byakuya said as he snapped out of his little daydream of Rukia and wiped the wicked smile off his face.

Aizen had summoned him to the Assembly Hall and started talking about 'family duty' for the past 10 minutes. Byakuya zoned out pretty much from the beginning. His mind was... was on other things.

'What were you saying, Aizen-sama?' Byakuya asked.

'Byakuya-san,' Orihime greeted him with a bow as she walked into the room. He nodded to acknowledge her then looked back to Aizen who sat on his throne looking bored.

'Byakuya, why the formality? This is just a family gathering,' Aizen said as he opened his arms.

'Oji-sama,' Byakuya muttered. Aizen smiled at his stubbornness.

'Byakuya, you do know that you are my favourite nephew?'

'Aren't I your _only_ nephew?' he retorted.

'And that is what I want to talk to you about, Byakuya. Being my only male heir, you have great responsibility. You both do.'

Aizen was amused by the confused expressions on his daughter and nephew. Perhaps Orihime had some use after all.

'Otou-sama?'

'Byakuya, you are aware that you will be the future king, no? It is then important to keep the Kuchiki bloodline completely pure.' Aizen stood up from his throne and began to walk towards the cousins.

'I am proud to announce your engagement to one another. Together, you will bare heirs with the purest of pureblood flowing through them. They will be the strongest vampires.'

'Otou-sama!' Orihime gasped.

'I refuse,' Byakuya stated flatly. Aizen sighed. In truth, he did expect them to react this way.

'You do know I wasn't asking, right?'

'Y-Yes, Otou-sama,' Orihime said softly as she bowed.

'I will not marry her. I don't like her that way.' He raised a hand towards Orihime. 'No offense, but I don't.'

Orihime blushed at Byakuya's blunt statement. Aizen placed a firm hand on Byakuya's shoulder. No one ever dared to disobey him. All except for his nephew. As he was his only heir he wasn't in a rush to kill him. And Byakuya knew it. He often took advantage of that fact.

'As a Kuchiki, the first pure bloodline, there are some things we have to do that don't like. We have to act in the best interests for the royal family name.'

'Oji-sa-'

'It's our responsibility. It is your responsibility as my only male heir.'

Byakuya sighed. Sometimes he hated being a Kuchiki. Then he also had to be the _only_ heir. So much was expected from him. He had to learn about _everything_. Swordsmanship, dark magic, arts and literature. _Everything._ And he had to be the _best_ at everything. It meant that he had to work twice as hard compared to other purebloods. The Kuchiki name always came first. It sucked. Sometimes he just wanted to be a _normal_ pureblood.

'Don't space out on me, Byakuya. Besides, you don't have much choice. All the other female purebloods are all paired up.'

'I don't care, I'm not ma... Wait a minute. What did you mean _all_ of the female purebloods?' Byakuya asked. His eyebrows knitted in confusion.

'Is Rukia...'

'Ulquiorra is marrying Rukia but he's asked me not to announce it just yet. So, as I was saying-'

'What do you mean he's...He_ can't_ marry her,' Byakuya protested. All thoughts of his own marriage were forgotten.

'And why not?' Aizen asked lifting an eyebrow.

'Rukia wouldn't marry him. He's her sister's fiancée-'

'And Hisana is dead,' Aizen dead-panned.

Byakuya's heart rate quickened. His breaths quickened. He always knew Ulquiorra was overprotective of Rukia but he thought it was rather normal from cousin behaviour. Or perhaps she was his dead fiancée's sister so he looked after Rukia on Hisana's behalf. Or perhaps it was because she was the only family member he had left. Never did Byakuya think Ulquiorra felt anything else for Rukia. _Never._ Why would he? She was Hisana's _sister_! _Sister_!

_How could I not see it? Rukia had grown to look so much like Hisana over these years. That bastard! _

His eyes widened in disbelief. Blood within him began to surge through him. It was beginning to boil burning throughout his body.

'We shall celebrate with a huge wedding. A wedding befitting the noble purebloods you are. What do you say, dear nephew?'

Aizen turned round to see Byakuya already leaving the room completely ignoring everyone even the King of all vampires. He sighed. Byakuya had ignored him even when he called out to him. It was in his nature to be arrogant and rebellious. Majority of the Kuchiki males were like that even Aizen was like that when he was young.

Byakuya didn't care for Aizen's calls. He clutched his hands into fists unable to contain his silence any longer. He had to find her; to win her heart. It was now or never. He wasn't going to marry someone he had no interest in and he was certainly not going to let the love of his life marry someone else.

_I might be a fool up until now but I'll be damned if I don't do something about this now!_

He began to run making his way to Rukia's room. Finally realising his feelings for Rukia after all these years, was he going to be too late to be with her? How did she feel for him? Will she marry Ulquiorra? There were so many questions that he had to know the answer to. He rushed past other vampires and his female fans desperately trying to find his way to her. Her kiss was so soft. It was only a few days ago when her kisses touched his. It was so sweet he could almost taste it now. It was unforgettable because she had kissed him back.

_Rukia, I can't lose you._

* * *

'Rukia!'

Byakuya charged into the room. So many emotions were flying around his head which made him forget to knock on the door first. It swung wide and bounced slightly when it hit the wall. His eyes bulged flaring with anger at the sight. The coiled fire within him was about to erupt like a volcano.

'You?' Byakuya hissed. 'What are _you_ doing here?'

'Me?' Ulquiorra smirked. 'Why can't I be here? This is _my_ room.'

Silence lingered for a while as Byakuya looked around. He recognised the room and the crowd of Chappy bunny teddies gave away the answer. He looked back at Ulquiorra with burning resentment.

'This room belongs to Rukia. Where is she?' There were no traces of her energy and no traces of the roses he sent her.

_Did she... No, Ulquiorra must have removed them..._

'Correction, this room belongs to me_ and_ Rukia,' Ulquiorra retorted with a hint of pride.

'You and... but Rukia... Rukia is...' Byakuya stuttered.

It came to such a shockto him he could hardly speak properly. His throat ran dry. He just couldn't form the words. And Kuchiki Byakuya _never_ stuttered. Did he just hear right? Rukia and Ulquiorra in the same room? That would mean the same bed!

_Impossible! Rukia wouldn't-_

'Rukia has agreed to marry me. She is to be my wife. So, naturally, we will be sleeping in the same room.'

Byakuya was fuming...

**

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Ooh I didn't just add another cliffee...! I placed a little hint in chapter 4 -

_** It was a sad day for both of them when they lost Hisana. You could say Ulqiorra suffered more than Rukia.**_** I wonder if anyone picked up on that... What do you think of the Ulquiorra/Hisana/Rukia relationship? What do you think of the chapter? Let me know.**

**All reviews welcomed. Ja x**


	7. The Promise

**The Promise**

**Hey people! YuYuAnne here with an update. Many thanks to my last week reviewers: Rukes, 1superkawaii, XBlueSkyX, Beijing Girl, White snow, Vicky73, Yuniee, sagittariusleo, kejora, Namine1993, RukiaYoukoMashi, omg, Darth-Taisha. Love all of them! All so motivating! xxx Special thanks to IcePrincess95 who added me as her fave author (bows). I'm grateful for those who also added this story to their fave and alert list. **

**I'll try not to make it too OC but as an AU it's quite hard to avoid it. But I'll do my best to keep it to a minimum! x **

**Well done XBlueSkyX for spotting the hint. I'll develop on that area later but there's another hint in this chapter too x**

**Anyways, on with the chapter. Hope I don't disappoint!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach just this plot **

* * *

'Rukia has agreed to marry me. She is to be my wife. So, naturally, we will be sleeping in the same room.'

Byakuya was fuming.

'Between the same sheets, no doubt,' Ulquiorra continued his torment.

_Only I can have her. The sooner you understand that the better._

Byakuya clutched his fists trying his best to keep his composure. His will power was slowly disappearing.

'Just because Rukia is like Hisana that doesn't give you the right to use her as a substitute,' Byakuya hissed.

'I'm not asking her to be. Rukia is marrying me because she wants to; because she loves me.'

'Never!' Byakuya shouted.

His voice hitched high as if someone had stabbed him through the heart. Those words were unbelievable. Those words were painful.

'She is _my_ woman,' Ulquiorra warned.

A bright burning light soared through Byakuya's hand heading towards Ulquiorra. His eyes widened at the sudden action. It was more of a surprise rather than shock.

_Way of destruction; blue fire crash down_

The spell never reached Ulquiorra. A grey black rectangular sheet shielded Ulquiorra from the attack blocking it completely. It was as if the sheet absorbed the entire blue fire before vanishing into thin air itself.

_Way of binding; splitting void_

Both men turned towards the shadow lurking in the doorway. A slight shiver passed through them as they felt a huge energy filled with killing intent slowly approach them.

'Do I have to remind you both,' Aizen walked into the room showing himself under the moonlight, 'fights among other purebloods are strictly forbidden.'

'Yes, Aizen-sama,' the two men both said as they bowed to their king.

'Byakuya, you are most at fault for using spells against your own kind.'

'Forgive me, Oji-sama. It will not happen again.'

Ulquiorra's eyebrows twisted in knots. It was clear that the two spells were only used by soul reapers more commonly known as _kido_. No vampire knew how to use them because the correct incantations were not known. Yet, both Aizen and Byakuya clearly had access to at least some of the spells. The most surprising was that the binding spell Aizen used was definitely a higher level spell. It was the first time Ulquiorra had seen a vampire use a soul reaper spell.

_How is that possible? What other spells do they master? When-_

'Ulquiorra, I have important matters to discuss with you. I will meet you at the Assembly Hall.'

'As you wish, Aizen-sama,' he said as he bowed. Just as he reached towards the exit he glanced back towards Byakuya.

'And for the record, Rukia is _not_ a substitute. She is _nothing_ like Hisana.'

Ulquiorra smiled to himself or was he smirking at Byakuya? He turned back to finally walk out of the room. Byakuya, not convinced with Ulquiorra's statement, took a step forwards to follow him.

'Do not make me repeat myself,' Aizen stated calmly, 'I haven't punished you for using kido on your own kind yet.'

Byakuya stopped in his tracks. Only four purebloods knew the secret to using kido. Aizen wanted to keep this weapon among his family so the Kuchiki name will remain the royal purebloods and possessing great powers far beyond other vampires' reach. So, the fewer vampires knew of their secret the better. And now, someone else knew but Ulquiorra didn't even question about it. How odd? Aizen looked to the exit.

_Ulquiorra, what are you thinking? What should I do with you?_

* * *

'Rukia-san?'

'Huh?'

'Are you ok, Rukia-san? I've called out to you three times but you still didn't answer me,' Orihime asked. They had been walking in the hallway but Rukia was spacing out now and then during their conversation.

'Sorry, Orihime,' Rukia offered in slight awkwardness.

'Is everything alright, Rukia-san?'

Rukia felt the ever so warm and caring Orihime hold her hand. The pureblood princess never looked down on any other vampire. Her gentle approach seemed like a weakness to others but Rukia thought it was endearing; sweet even. They were good friends. She admired Orihime's looks too. Being tall, slim and blessed with a voluptuous chest, Orihime had a body that most men would die for. Yet, being a princess often meant that your marriage was arranged by the parents and not of your own free will.

'Orihime, I hear you're...' Rukia hesitated for a moment, 'you're getting married soon?'

'Uh.' She nodded slowly.

'It makes me sad that you cannot marry who you truly wish but marry... someone your father chooses.'

'Rukia-san, are you sad for me or sad because it is _me_ marrying Byakuya-san?'

'Huh?' Rukia gasped. 'Wh-what... what do mean?' Rukia stuttered. She completely forgot how to talk properly at the blunt question.

_Why would I be sad? What do I care if that idiot is marrying someone else? Why am I stuttering? Come on, Rukia, pull yourself together!_

'It's ok, Rukia-san.' She noticed they had already arrived at the music room. 'Oh, I forgot to bring my practice book. Rukia, will you wait inside while I run off to get it?'

'Uh,' Rukia nodded and Orihime began to depart on her own.

* * *

BE-BEEP. BE-BEEP

Byakuya opened up his text message from Orihime.

_It's done_

Byakuya smiled. Delicately, he placed his hands over the black and white keys and started to move around the piano in a graceful manner. The intoxicating music filled the entire room. Being pureblood royalty, he was forced to learn music and he took an interest in piano playing. However, he tried not to play often as it seemed to attract more female attention. But now, he wanted to attract _her_ attention...

His eyes glanced eagerly over at the music door longing for her to enter the room. He hadn't seen her for almost three weeks. Ulquiorra made sure she stayed away from him. That was why he worked out this plan with Orihime.

The golden handle pushed down. His heart pumped quicker with anticipation as the door slowly creaked open.

* * *

A familiar tune echoed from the music room. Someone was already occupying the music room. Perhaps she shouldn't disturb them but still she didn't leave. Rukia leaned a little closer pushing her ear against the woodwork desperately trying to hear more. She straightened her back.

_This is my favourite piece_

Curiosity found the better of her as her body decided to enter the room.

_Perhaps they won't mind if I just sit in to listen? _

* * *

Absence makes the heart grow fonder. That was definitely true in the sense that Rukia seemed to look more beautiful than ever. Byakuya quickly looked away from her trying not to give away the fact that he was already expecting her. The clicking of heals told him she was approaching towards him. The closer she got the faster he began to play. He couldn't contain the excitement within him.

_Calm down. You are cool, calm and collected. _

He closed his eyes to focus his mind just on playing. As a skilful pianist he quickly resumed the proper rhythm. But his mistake was to open his eyes again as he found her standing behind him. Her presence was difficult to ignore. He could feel her eyes burning his back. A little tingle passed through him.

With her soft and warm hand she gently touched his shoulder. It jerked his focus causing him to stop playing abruptly.

'Byakuya,' he moved his head round look up to her, 'this music...' she trailed.

'I learnt it especially for you,' he said with a small smile. 'You love it, right?'

'I...' She couldn't help but blush.

It was the main theme to a romantic film, The Piano. A mute woman wrote a piano piece, called, The Promise, in memory of her first lover. She fell in love with her piano teacher but then her family sold her into marriage. She vowed to never speak or to love another. That was her _promise _to her lover. A promise to only love one person _forever_ no matter what. It was Rukia's favourite love story. She had dragged Byakuya to watch it with her over and over again. So they both knew the meaning behind the music.

'This is my _promise_ to you,' he picked up her hand and planted a little kiss over her delicate fingers, 'I will love you and _only_ you.'

A warm fuzzy feeling coarse through her body; tinting her cheeks. Never had she seen Byakuya so serious before. He genuinely meant what he said. No more playing games. It was true affection he was displaying towards her.

'Byakuya.'

She removed her fingers away from his lips to stroke his face. He had such young and smooth skin despite living for more than 30 years. Vampires hardly ever aged only if your blood was mixed with foreign blood. Purebloods stayed younger longer than any other vampires.

Her touches found their way to trace his lips. They were so velvety smooth. She wondered if it was just as soft to kiss them.

It was so agonising for Byakuya. It was almost like a torture ritual. He grabbed her hand to pull her closer; pulling her head down a little. His neck stretched out far enough for his lips to push onto hers. Lips silky like flower petals. The only thing that made it sweeter was that Rukia's kisses were responding to his.

A little gasp escaped her as Byakuya's kisses became fierce. Taking this fine opportunity, he delved his tongue into her mouth swiping it along hers. Rukia moaned at the sensual touch. While his tongue continued to explore her mouth his hands wandered around her bum; feeling and squeezing the fleshy skin.

Stopping his passionate kisses he stood up and picked her up in his strong arms. He swivelled around and sat her on top of the shiny black piano. Her legs hung off the edge of the piano and rested her feet on the piano stool. Gently, he pushed her back to lie across the smooth musical instrument as he continued kissing her again. This time he began attacking her neck making Rukia shudder with pleasure. Byakuya relished in her moans. It increased his lust.

His hand stroked down her body from the valley between her breasts, over her flat stomach and then stopped at her womanhood. He rubbed her womanhood through her short skirt drawing circles over it. Louder moans caught Byakuya's attention. A different kind of _music_ to his ears. He stopped his kisses to watch Rukia squirm. Her flustered face; her raw moans; her quaking body. He was taking it all in.

_God, you look so beautiful_

He sat back down on the piano stool and stopped his ministrations. Surprised or perhaps disappointed, Rukia looked up slightly only to see Byakuya lifting up her skirt exposing her lacy panties. Byakuya tore his hands into her tights to get to her underwear. His head bent down and disappeared in between her legs to kiss her core through the flimsy panties. His hot breath blew up her core. She threw her head back down again and moaned. A new wave of emotions started to seep through.

BE-BEEP. BE-BEEP

Byakuya stared confusingly at Orihimie's text message snapping him back to reality.

_It's done_

He turned back but he was indeed alone in the music room. He couldn't help but sigh to himself.

_Just another fantasy, huh?_

Rukia was only just about to approach the room. He shook his head to concentrate on the music piece. Hopefully, things would go as smoothly as did in his dream. A little grin surfaced as he began to play.

In the corner of his eye Byakuya could see a little movement meaning Rukia had entered the room. The high anticipation within him caused him to hit a few wrong keys.

Rukia recognised the music instantly. It was beautiful despite the little errors and irregular tempo.

_The Promise. The promise of eternal love_

She had always wanted Byakuya to play just for her. How wonderful it would be if he could compose a melody just for her?

She took her time to admire the handsome man gliding his fingers across the keyboard ever so elegantly. It had been a while since she last saw him. It was best to keep away since her engagement to Ulquiorra was finally announced. Rukia twitched.

_Itoko-san... I shouldn't be here_

* * *

Orihime laid down onto her bed sprawling her luscious long locks over her pink fluffy pillows. She stares into the whites of her ceiling with no intention of going back to the music room.

_Rukia-san, you will probably want to ask why I am doing this._

Grimmjow pulled her naked body into his. Slowly, he drifted off into sleep; content that she was finally _his_ woman. Kuchiki Byakuya wouldn't marry her especially not now that she has been _tainted_ by him. Orihime snuggled closer to her lover.

_Byakuya-san, you don't have to thank me for helping you. If you get together with Rukia..._

She admired Gimmjow's sleeping form.

_.. then I am free to be with the one I truly love. _

She sighed

_I just want to be happy. Is that selfish of me? Perhaps we can __**all**__ find happiness? _

* * *

Byakuya chanced a glance over to Rukia and decided to stop. Her face was gloomy. The violet eyes that were normally bright now seemed to be filled with sadness. Troubled. She seemed to be quite troubled. Her whole body slumped low like an enormous weight was sitting on her shoulders binding her.

'Rukia,' he called but no reaction came from her.

Her eyes remained focussed on the floor between them. He made his way over to her closing the gap between them. Byakuya was right in front of her but still she didn't move.

'Rukia, do I displease you?' Her eyes lit up to look into his. 'This is your favourite song, is it not?' I learnt this piece just for you.' Rukia's eyes widened.

'Me?'

He stepped closer. For some reason she was a little nervous making her step back. He arched over her ear.

'Rukia,' he took another step closer to her but she couldn't go back any further as she hit the door behind her, 'it has always been you,' he purred.

She stifled a gasp as his lips placed a tender kiss on her cheek. He bent his head to dip in the crook of her neck placing sweet kisses up and down it. She shuddered in delight. His tongue slipped out to move across the sensitive area. Her knees began to turn into mush; hardly able to stand on their own. She was beginning to melt under his contact. Butterfly kisses travelled up again, over her cheek to the main target of her lips. To her own surprise she was kissing him too.

Pleased that she was responding he pushed her into the door hard as he tried to deepen the kiss. All his fantasies were nothing compared to the real thing. He pushed his tongue inside her to taste more.

CHING. CHING.

The clock hanging on the wall chimed two o'clock in the morning. It broke their kiss. Much to Byakuya's annoyance. When he looked back to Rukia she looked shocked and covered her mouth with both hands.

_What am I doing? I'm engaged! _

She summoned all her might to step away from him. She just had to ignore these feelings for Byakuya. How could she break off the engagement? How could she leave Ulquiorra?

'Byakuya,' she took a deep breath before she continued, 'it may be more appropriate for you to play Für Elise.'

'Rukia,' his voice broke a little.

He was stunned. This was a sudden change of mood.

Für Elise, one of Ludwig van Beethoven's famous pieces. It was one he composed to confess his love to a close friend. Unfortunately, she rejected him to marry another. In Rukia's polite way, she was turning him down.

'You're rejecting me... for _him_?' He lost his composure for a while. 'For the likes of him?'

'Itoko-san is a good man.' She didn't want anyone to disrespect Ulquiorra.

'But you still only see him as a _cousin_, right?'

'I...'

She hesitated. Perhaps that would explain why she still called Ulquiorra by that rather than his actual name. Or was it just a force of habit?

'You don't love him.' Was that a question or a statement?

'I... Of course I do. He's looked after me and protected me for all these years. Everything he does is for me. He-'

'That's not love,' Byakuya cut in, 'that's just gratitude. That's not a reason to marry someone.'

'It... it's not like that...' Rukia shifted a little away from him.

'Rukia, it's me that you want.' He cupped her cheek so she could face him again.

'Bya-'

'You kissed back. You want me.' His eyes fixed onto her lips again.

Her eyes spread wider. It was true. She did kiss him back. All those feelings for him were flooding right back. She was so overwhelmed by the emotions she couldn't move as he dipped his head to the side hovering over her mouth. Ready to continue their kiss.

_... you said you would be with me. Have you had a change of heart? Are you to abandon me?_

How could she betray Ulquiorra?

'No, I can't,' she gasped as she pushed him away from her. Her feet found their way to the exit as she locked up her feelings again.

'Rukia!' She looked up at him. It pained her.

'Please just forget about the kiss.' And she ran off.

* * *

Finally, she couldn't run anymore and slid down one of the corridor walls. Tears spilled out of her as she remembered the last look on Byakuya's face. He was full of hurt; full of sorrow. It was unbearable for her to watch.

_I'm so sorry. I... For a moment there I did lose my resolve and kissed him. Forgive me, itoko-san... I..._

The guilt was eating her. She felt hopeless. Although she had no ill intention but all she seemed to be doing was hurt those close to her. Ichigo. Ulquiorra. Byakuya. So much had happened her mind was flying out of control. It was all so confusing to her. She hugged her knees and looked up towards the Heavens.

_What should I do? I just want to do the right thing but why is it so hard?_

_Or do you want me to be all alone again? Should I lose you too?_

Ulquiorra's words kept ringing in her head again and again. It was like brain-washing her mind. She felt unable to leave him.

Suddenly, she snapped her head up. A spiritual energy was lurking around the corner. It was faint but it was most definitely foreign. They were trying to hide the energy but weren't doing a very good job of it.

_An intruder!_

Rukia dusted herself off and got to her feet. Instantly, she hid her own energy. She took a deep breath to steady herself and prepared to ambush the trespasser.

Three. Two. One.

And she jumped up into the air with her leg out to kick her victim. The figure turned round at the last minute.

'Ruki- AH!' She was shocked but was unable to stop her boot from colliding into his face.

'Ichigo?' She stood up straight while Ichigo wailed in pain on the floor.

'What are you doing here? Do you want to get killed? Idiot!' He grabbed his face still in agony.

'Nice to see you too! I'm fine by the way. Thanks for asking!' He oozed sarcasm.

'Ichigo, you're not meant to be here.' She looked around checking for any other vampires.

'I think you broke my nose,' Ichigo complained as he rubbed his face. 'Am I bleeding?'

'Ichigo!'

'Yeah, yeah,' he picked himself back up, 'I'm here on behalf of my master to meet with your Pureblood King.'

'What? I don't understand.' Confusion painted her entire face.

'Rukia, do you think that one day, vampires and humans could live side by side peacefully?'

'I... Ichigo...?'

'No more of us killing each other. No more wars. No more chaos. Just vampires and humans as...' He looked at Rukia and smiled. '... as friends?'

'I...' Speechless. She was absolutely speechless.

_Is that really possible? Is he asking if we can-_

'Rukia!' Renji bombarded over to them. 'Kurosaki-san, there you are! I've been looking everywhere for you! I couldn't find you in the washroom. Where did you go?'

'I er... I...' He hesitated. 'I got lost.'

'Oh, right. Yeah, it's easy to get lost in this castle,' Renji laughed.

'Yeah, it is' Ichigo said nervously. 'It's this way, right?'

Ichigo nodded over to the end of the corridor. There was a huge heavy door with four guards in front of it. All four men were strong built and carried weapons on them. It was screaming out some sort of secret matter. Whatever was in there seemed to be rather important.

'No, no, you can't go in there. No one's really allowed there. I think it's some sort of weapon's storage room or something.'

'Is that so...?' Ichigo eyed the room with more curiosity.

* * *

**And that's it for the moment. What do you think of the chapter? Let me know.**

**I particularly liked Orihime's part in this chapter. I admired how she admitted to be jealous of Rukia in the actual series. Not a lot of people can be honest about that. So I wanted to bring that honesty side of selfishness in the story. **

**You probably hate me for not putting warnings for limes, lemons, IchiRuki, UlquiHisana and so on but I just wanted to keep the element of surprise hehe. Hope you can bear with me x**

**All reviews welcomed. Ja x**


	8. Temporary Peace

**Hey everyone! Gomen, gomen, for the late update again. This was the hardest chapter I had to write so far. I re-wrote it like 5 times! It made me tear my hair out! That's why I took so long to post it.**

**Many thanks to Nathalie Schiffer, IcePrincess95, Beijing Girl, Ghost Ally, 1superkawaii, Yuniee, akiremichan, Vicky73, RukiaCHAN1 and AlaeaMori for reviewing my previous chapter! Love you all! Special thanks goes to Vicky73 and RukiaCHAN1 for making me your fave author! I'm honoured! I am also grateful for those who added this story to their fave list and alert list and read it. Hope you enjoy it. I can never really tell. Let me know if you like it or not x**

**I forgot to mention in the last chapter, the music Byakuya was playing is called, The Promise; The Heart Asks for Pleasure First by Michael Nyman. Give it a listen. It's lovely. It was the main soundtrack to the film, The Piano where I got a little inspiration from. To be honest, I loved picturing Byakuya playing the piano! lol**

**Thanks to Yuniee, Vicky73, 1Superkawaii and Chocolate Thunder for reviewing my other story, Mark your territory and thanks to everyone else who supported it. I had some chapters in my head planned but judging by the little number of reviews I decided to just leave it. Perhaps I'll just concentrate on A Hunger For You first lol. If people want an update do tell me x**

**Anyways, on with the chapter. Hope it doesn't disappoint.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach just this plot**

**The course of **_**true love**_** never did run smooth – William Shakespeare**

**

* * *

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Temporary Peace

'No, no, you can't go in there. No one's really allowed there. I think it's some sort of weapon's storage room or something.'

'Is that so...?' Ichigo eyed the room with more curiosity.

As if on cue, the doors to the secret chamber slowly creaked open. A tall white figure gracefully emerged from the room. Ichigo's eyes narrowed at the sight of Ulquiorra; hating him more and more by the second.

'Did I not tell you I'll kill you if you come near _my_ Rukia again?' Ulquiorra threatened as he made his way over to them.

'How would you like to die?'

Ulquiorra smirked as he sensed Ichigo's energy flare up with anger covering the hallway. He still couldn't control his spiritual energy.

_Pathetic human_

It took all of Ichigo's will power to stop himself from throwing his fists at Ulquiorra. No, there were more important things at hand and he was not allowed to ruin things. He would have to ignore Ulquiorra... _for now_.

'Rukia,' he stretched out his arm and pulled her into his body to hug her, 'where have you been all day? I've missed you, my dear.' Ichigo twisted his eyebrows and clutched his fists.

'I...Itoko-san...'

Rukia trailed off. She couldn't bring herself to look at him. She was too busy filling herself with guilt after her kiss with Byakuya. Not only did she kiss Byakuya but she actually _wanted _him. It was like she betrayed Ulquiorra.

'Rukia, did you miss me?' he asked as he stroked the back of her head.

'Ha...Hai' she whispered.

She was a little confused as Ulquiorra never displayed this much affection towards her in front of others. He pulled her slightly away from him to plant a little kiss on her forehead.

'Don't worry. I just have this meeting with some_ trash_ and I'll be with you soon after, my dear.'

Ichigo's energy roared with jealousy. The black energy erupted from him and startled them. He knew what Ulquiorra was trying to do. This display was only used to warn him off. But still, Ichigo was finding it hard to control his feelings.

_Teme..._

* * *

Uncomfortable. It was incredibly uncomfortable for Ichigo. He was in the Assembly Hall with four pureblood vampires. Their evil aura surrounded him almost choking him. He couldn't move. The massive energy was pushing his shoulders down and he couldn't do anything about it. Worst of all he had no weapon. He was forced to leave his zanpakutou at the entrance for insurance reasons. They didn't want Ichigo to cause any problems.

'Please, this is not how we treat our guests,' Aizen calmly stated as he observed what was going on from his throne.

'Ah,' Ichigo gasped quietly from relief as all the energy lifted away from him.

He gave a scowl to the row of three purebloods. It was undeniable that him and the vam[ires hated each other but Ichigo forced himself to hold back. There were a lot at stake here. Kisuke gave him strict orders.

'It is disappointing that I could not meet with Uraharu Kisuke face to face,' Aizen looked over to Yoruichi with a sly smile, 'I would have liked to hear what he had to say.' She smiled back matching his evil grin.

'Yes, it would have been quite a show,' she smirked at their inside joke.

It was a wonder for a soul reaper to be able to remain alive in the vampire castle. It was unheard of. Aizen returned his gaze towards Ichigo again.

'My master sends his sincere apologies. Unfortunately, he has taken ill and therefore unable to attend. I am here to take his place,' Ichigo offered.

'Oh, are you now?' Grimmjow's tone was covered with sarcasm. '_You_ replace _him_?' He began to circle Ichigo like a prey, like his next meal.

'How do you size up to the famous Urahara Kisuke? The man who slaughtered hundreds, thousands of our brothers and sisters?'

Grimmjow shot out his arm and tugged at Ichigo's robes. He looked down at Ichigo with upmost spite. He was fuming. When did vampires suddenly have to be civilised towards soul reapers? Weren't they supposed to tear them into shreds at the first sight? The other purebloods all thought the sameand so didn't stop Grimmjow.

'Shinigami,' he hissed the soul reaper's formal title, 'do you want to know how why I kept this fucking scar?'

Ichigo's eyes went to where Grimmjow was pointing at. He wore a white uniform with a black underneath fabric just like all male purebloods. He wore a jacket that left his toned chest bare for everyone to see. Right in the center of his chest was a thick scar that reached all the way down to his abdomen.

'You shits ambushed my family. I left this scar to remind me to kill every last one of you bitches!'

'I'm not here to fight,' Ichigo said calmly totally unaffected by Grimmjow's threat.

'What makes you think we would want to speak to the likes of you?' he spat.

'We have a solution to your thirst for blood.'

'A what?'

'A solution.'

Grimmjow immediately let go of Ichigo. He was baffled. No, to be more accurate, he was shocked. Thousands of years were spent by the purebloods to find a way to get rid of their only weakness. The moment they ran low on their blood supply they became weak, unable to focus and lastly started to go insane. Blood controlled them. They were slaves to it. But despite their efforts, no one could ever find a solution.

'Hmm? A_ cure_ did you say?'

Aizen perked up suddenly paid more interest in the soul reaper. In fact, Ichigo got everyone's attention. Ichigo shrugged his robes and brushed past Grimmjow after giving him a glare.

'Not a cure, but we can _manage_ it. These are what we call "_Sub-Blood_".'

'Impossible!' Grimmjow shouted. 'Do you seriously think we'll believe y-'

Ichigo held up a small glass bottle. Inside were 100 red tablets. He dangled the bottle in front of a shocked Grimmjow.

'If you don't believe it you can try it yourself.' Grimmjow fixed his eyes on the tablets. Totally speechless.

'This medication can control your hunger and also give you the energy you need to sustain you for hours.'

Ichigo smirked at Grimmjow's expression. His piercing blue eyes were wide with surprise. Everyone's eyes were wide with shock even the King of vampires was won over. And they had every right to be excited. This was their key to power. With that they would not have _any_ weaknesses. But surely this was too good to be true. Was there a catch?

'And you would just hand over this medication to us?' Ulquiorra asked. He already guessed that this would come with strings attached.

'Of course, we are not going to just give you the formula to this medicine for nothing in return.'

'So what is it that you desire? Name your price,' Aizen asked.

'My master will meet with you later to discuss the conditions.' Ichigo threw the bottle of tablets towards Aizen who caught it swiftly with one hand. Ichigo turned around with his back towards them all.

'For now, there will be peace between vampires and humans. Neither will attack each other so you can try these out yourselves. Should you be interested to take things further you know where we are.'

With that Ichigo strolled out of the Assembly Hall. An air of arrogance; an air of pride followed with him.

_And you __**will **__come to us. You will be our toys from now on..._

A wicked grin washed over Ichigo's face. As he disappeared out of the room everyone else was left confused. Was this really a remedy or was it some sort of trap? Aizen looked at the tablets with deep interest.

'Aizen-sama, you're not seriously going to grant him a ceasefire? Peace among vampires and humans? That's impossible!' Yoruichi advised.

'Temporarily, perhaps...' Aizen didn't seem too certain himself.

'Can there really be solution...?' asked Grimmjow. He was still dumbstruck with the medical breakthrough.

'It is some sort of power play,' Ulquiorra analyzed.

'By not giving us the formula means that we depend entirely on them supplying us with the medication,' he continued. 'They wish to control us with this.'

'It is a great invention, you have to admit.' Aizen smiled at the medicine. He couldn't take his eyes of it.

'Aizen-sama, we may have to take some tests and start some trials before any purebloods take them. We can't rule out if it's just a trap,' Ulquiorra advised.

Ulquioora wasn't tempted. Temptation always clouded all logic. He found it rather suspicious that the humans just requested for no more war so suddenly.

_Can there be something more dark hiding behind all this?_

'Very well, Ulquiorra, I entrust you with this experiment...'

* * *

Clitter-clatter. Clitter-clatter. Rukia marched up and down, up and down the hallway. She was nervous for Ichigo. She was nervous as to what was happening.

_Can humans and vampires seriously live together peacefully? How? Is it possible? Why is it taking so long? Is Ichigo safe in there? They won't kill him, right? What if-_

'Oi! MIDGET!' Ichigo screamed.

Rukia jumped up. She was so lost in her thoughts she did not notice Ichigo's presence in the slightest.

'Ichigo? You're still alive?' He chuckled and ruffled her hair into a mess.

'Nice to know you still care, midget.'

'Baka! Stop calling me a midget!' she huffed. 'You're the one who's too tall. You ten foot freak!'

He chuckled some more. He loved how she always exaggerated on things. He loved how he could wind her up so easily. It was rather cute to see her annoyed little face.

'I have missed your company, Rukia.' Ichigo flashed a warm smile for her.

A faint blush tainted over the top of Rukia's cheeks. It was a relief that Ichigo didn't hate her. God, it was a relief that he was even talking to her. And to think that he actually_ missed_ her... Wow. She smiled at him. She was over the moon. But then her smile began to fade.

'Ichigo... Gomen, I...' she hesitated. 'I didn't tell you I was a vampire. I didn't mean-'

'Don't apologize, Rukia.' Rukia gasped.

'You saved me. Twice. If it weren't for you...'

Pause. He blushed a little and looked away. He couldn't bear to look at her face. He was shy. No, he felt bad possibly even a little guilty. He took a deep breath to ease his nerves.

'If it weren't for you I probably wouldn't be here today...' He closed his eyes for a moment to focus his thoughts before looking at her right into her eyes.

'Gomen.'

'Baka!' She threw a light-hearted punch into his stomach. Ichigo winced from the shock not from the pain.

'You didn't do anything wrong, Ichigo. You don't have to feel bad. I would have reacted the way you did if I was in your position.' He smiled.

'So you forgive me, yeah?' he asked.

'Of course. We're friends, right?,;

'Yeah, _friends_...' He was a little disappointed as the sound of that word.

'Rukia, no matter what happens; we'll always be _friends_, right?'

'Mmm,' she nodded quickly. 'Can humans and vampires really be _friends_?'

'Perhaps,' he straightened up. 'I hope the medication will help to bring peace.'

'Medication?' She was confused again. What had medicine got to do with their war?

'Oh,' he brought out another bottle of tablets from his robes, 'this is a new invention of Soul Society. It's used to alleviate vampires' thirst for blood.'

'Really? Is that possible.'

She eyed the bottle with reserved anticipation. No medicine could work. There were many failed attempts to find a cure.

'Here,' he took her hand and dumped the bottle into her palm, 'try it.'

'Huh?' she gasped.

'Don't tell anyone you've got the medicine though. I've only given your king one bottle. If he wants more we want him to come to us.'

She picked up the bottle and stared at the red tablets. There must been about 100 tablets. They actually looked like normal tablets despite the colour. She shook the bottle.

'I can really have these?' There was silence. She looked up to see him look at her blankly. 'Ichigo? Did you hear me?'

'Sure. Yeah...' He cleared his throat. 'Er... Take about 5 a day for it to work it's magic. Hopefully we can restore peace on Earth.'

'Ichi...' she noticed his awkward smile, 'go...'

'Do not overstay your welcome, shinigami,' Ulquiorra threatened.

_Don't tell anyone you've got the medicine though_

Rukia had a few seconds to tuck the bottle under her sleeve out of sight as her fiancé and Renji made their way over to them. She spotted an identical bottle with the same looking tablets in Ulquiorra's hand.

_I hope it really works..._

'Renji.'

'Hai, Ulquiorra-sama,' Renji said as bowed towards him.

'Be sure that our guest doesn't get lost on his way to the exit.'

'Hai. Kurosaki-san, please?' Renji extended his arm out to point Ichigo in the right direction.

'Well, I guess I'll see you around, midget. Ja ne?'

'Ah.' Rukia nodded and watched as Ichigo walked off with Renji leading the way to depart the castle.

_Peace on Earth huh?_

* * *

The pouring hot water rained over Rukia's naked body. Hot air steamed around the bathroom creating a fog-like scene. Even the mirror was covered in a blurry glaze. She had spent almost 30 minutes in the shower lost in her thoughts. Weeks. It had been nearly three weeks since she started taking the Sub-Blood tablets but her thirst was still there. And then there was-

'Ah!'

A fierce pain shot up and stabbed at her head. It began to spread all over her brain. A loud ringing noise echoed in her mind making her run out of the shower. Her hands clutched at her hair and she shook her head side to side trying to get rid of the pain. Then, all of a sudden, the pain slowly disappeared.

_What's wrong with me?_

* * *

A loud muffled sound came from the bathroom. Ulquiorra, being the gentleman, went to knock on the door first. He turned to the side and rested his ear over the bathroom door.

'Rukia, is everything alright?'

Nothing. No sound came from her so he knocked and called her name again. Once more, there was no response from her but he could hear the running of water so she was definitely still in there. Panic took over him so he decided to open the door.

Smokey hot air came rushing out of the bathroom seeking an escape into the bedroom. Once the mist was cleared he could clearly see Rukia leaning over the sink. His eyes widened. A little blush came over him; something that never really happened.

She was completely naked. Her creamy skin was exposed to him fully. Her smooth back glittered with droplets of water. She had a slender body like he had always imagined night after night. His eyes wandered over to her cute little bum. It looked so plump; so soft; tempting. It was asking to be touched...

Rukia was facing away from him and the mirror was covered in steam so he could not see the other half of her body. But it was seductive enough. His heart was in his mouth pumping loud and fast. His body suddenly became hot and stiff.

_Kami, she's pure perfection..._

It wasn't like this was the first time she saw a woman naked. Despite his cold and stoic manner he had a fair amount of women throwing themselves at him. The amount of female attention he received was not short from the amount Byakuya received. Many women had stripped of their clothing trying to seduce him but he wasn't interested. Ulquiorra only had eyes for one woman...

* * *

Rukia coughed gently. She could hardly feel any more pain but she was still a little numb from it. It all started a little over two weeks ago. She began to get headaches. She got them more and more often and then the pain grew. But today was definitely the most painful. Something was wrong. She was sure of it.

_Perhaps her body was rejecting to the medicine? I'll have to ask-_

She gasped as she felt someone pull her into an embrace from behind. She panicked. She was so scared her body froze; unable to move away.

'Rukia,' Ulquiorra purred.

_That voice... _

Her body relaxed. She even breathed a sigh of relief at the familiar voice. But then the panic returned. She was NAKED. She was naked in front of _him_! Her face fumed tomato red.

'I...Itoko-san...'

She made a little attempt to move. It was more like a little wiggle as to ask him to let go of her.

'Rukia,' he purred again.

Ulquiorra didn't want to let go. In fact, he hugged her tighter around the waist. His hot breath sent tingles through her body as he stroked his lips up and down her throat. She shook a little from his ministrations.

'Ito-'

Her voice ripped away from her as soon as he placed long kisses over her neck. He could smell her wonderful essence. It was delicious. His mouth watered.

_Rukia, I want to taste you. I __**must.**__.._

He flipped out his hot tongue and ran it along the sensitive flesh. She closed her eyes. How could she deny her cousin, no, her _fiancé_?

Slowly; carefully he sank his fangs into her. Dull pain hit her and she bent her head backwards slightly. It made it easier for him to chew on her more. She whimpered but it didn't stop Ulquiorra. To be honest, he was actually turned on by it and sucked on her blood more hungrily.

Despite this was her future husband, she still felt uncomfortable in his arms; being touched by him; letting him drink from her. She couldn't find any pleasure from it. It seemed rather... wrong.

_Why?_

And to think that she didn't feel awkward when Byakuya fed on her; touched her; kissed her...

_Why?_

_That's not love..._

_... that's just gratitude_

* * *

Ulquiorra felt wonderful. His mind was so high he felt like soaring into the sky. He pushed his body into hers wanting to show her how much he wanted her. Her blood fuelled his desire like none other. Many nights had he spent alone wishing he was with her like he was now. He dreamt of making her his woman completely.

Rukia...

His embrace on her loosened a bit and his hand travelled upwards to cup her naked breast. Rukia gasped and tried to shake away from him.

'Itoko-san!'

'It's ok, Rukia,' he purred, 'we're engaged.' He went to touch the soft flesh again but Rukia pushed away from him.

'Iie... I mean...' she blushed and covered her breasts with her arms and faced away from. 'I mean...'

'You're not ready yet.'

'Gomen. I...'

'It's ok, my dear.' He stroked her silky hair and whispered in her ear, 'we can wait until our wedding day. It won't be long.'

He placed a small kiss on her head and walked out. Of course, he was disappointed. He wanted her so bad he would have devoured her right on the bathroom floor. But he didn't want to rush her. He wanted her to be ready for their first time and enjoy it to the fullest. There was no way he'd want to force her. They were soon to be married. They had plenty of time. She _will_ be his eventually.

**

* * *

**

And that's it for this chapter. I'm still continuing with the mystery feel to this story. I know I seem to be doing that a lot. Hope you can bear with it. It will gradually become clearer =)

**Sub-blood is my invention. I wanted to use the blood tablets in VK but in the end added my own twist. More of that in later chapters.**

**So what do you think of this chapter? I know there weren't any ByaRuki moments but I wanted Rukia to analyse her feelings for both Ulquiorra and Byakuya. **

**All reviews welcomed. Ja x**


	9. True Monsters

**Hey everyone! I'm back with another update. Many thanks to GhostAlly, RukiaCHAN1, RukiaYoukoMaSahi, Vicky73, 1SuperKawaii, loveyouso, Omili, Nathalie Shiffer and AlaeaMori for reviewing my last chapter (see end note). All your reviews mean so much and really help to motivate me! Xxx **

**Anyways, on with the chapter. Hope it doesn't disappoint.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach just this plot**

**Sometimes it's safer to be on the dark side –CSI:NY**

* * *

**True Monsters**

Quietly, Rukia sat down on a cold rock to steady herself. Her small fingers rubbed at both temples of her head to soothe the headache she had. It didn't do much good. The constant pain gave her such a bad mood plus she was unable to focus for most of the time.

At first, she thought the headaches were a side effect of the Sub-Blood tablets but that wasn't the case. Ulquiorra was carrying out tests on them and she secretly looked at his report notes. No one else experienced the pain she got so she thought her body was somehow rejecting the medicine.

She heard some faint footsteps approaching her, 'Ichi...' She trailed off when she finally turned round.

'Urahara-san?' She sounded surprised with a hint of disappointment.

'Oh, what a coincidence, I was just waiting for Ichigo. Have you seen him?'

Rukia had arranged to meet with Ichigo at the training grounds hoping he could help her. She looked over Kisuke's shoulder to search for her friends' presence but there was no such luck.

'Unfortunately for you, he will not be coming,' Urahara said as he smirked behind his fan.

'Huh?'

'How naive you have been, Rukia-san.' It wasn't a question. He was just toying with her; tormenting her.

* * *

Ichigo sat in Kisuke's house drumming his fingers on the table. His eyebrows twitched. He knew at the same time Kisuke was meeting with Rukia. Kisuke had asked Ichigo to arrange a meeting with Rukia and with Ichigo being the most obedient apprentice he did as he was told. Although he trusted his master he couldn't help feeling nervous that Kisuke had insisted on seeing her alone. And the guilt within Ichigo began eating at him again. It started the moment he gave Rukia the tablets.

_You saved me..._

_If it weren't for you I probably wouldn't be here today..._

_.. no matter what happens; we'll always be friends, right?_

He closed his eyes to block out all thoughts of their conversation; of _he_r. It was impossible. He could clearly remember the innocent look on her face. She trusted him and he took advantage of that.

_Friends..._

He clutched his fists and took a deep breath. Maybe he would regret this. Maybe this would displease his master. Maybe everything was already out of his control. But he just wanted to see Rukia was alright for himself if only to ease his own guilt.

He got up and went to leave the house. Out of nowhere, a blue luminescent arrow skimmed past Ichigo, narrowly missing his face and hit the front door. Another half an inch and it would have hit him. He looked over his shoulder already expecting Uryu Ishida behind him.

'Oh, I missed.' Ichigo ignored the death glare he was getting and turned towards the door again.

'Urahara-sempai told you not to interfere.'

'I'm not interfering. I'll just stand in the distance.'

'You're so easy to see through. You've fallen for her, haven't you, Kurosaki?'

Ichigo widened his eyes. It was kind of true when they say that those who are in love can be totally unaware of it but it is perfectly clear to by-standers. But it finally hit him now that Ishida had pointed it out to him.

Why did he look forward to training with her? Why did he miss her; worried about her when she didn't show up? Why was he disappointed when he discovered she was a vampire? Why was he jealous that she had a fiancé? Why was he angry when Ulquiorra kissed her? Why was he sad when she only saw him as a _friend_? Why was he about to go against his masters' orders just to see her?

_Because I've fallen for you..._

'Don't be ridiculous! Of course I haven't!' Ichigo pushed the thought to the back of his mind; refusing to acknowledge it.

'She's a pureblood. I'm a soul re-'

'It wouldn't be the first time a shinigami fell in love with a pureblood vampire.' Ichigo swung round to him; completely shocked. Ishida pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose.

'But it all ended in tears.' He wore a serious look on his face and glared right at Ichigo. 'Which is why I will not let you pass. If you must interfere, you will have to cut through me first.'

* * *

I don't quite understa-' Rukia's words were cut short as the pain surged into her head again but this time it was more intense than ever before. It felt like hundreds of tiny needles pricking at her head.

'AH!'

Rukia fell onto the floor on her knees as she clutched her head. Her whole body started to shake so violently she was sick on the grass. She huffed and puffed trying to catch her breath back. All the while Kisuke did not move and just watched her struggle in agony.

'Ura... hara... san...' She couldn't stop panting. It was still painful for her. 'I think... my body is... rejecting the Sub-Blood-'

She coughed hard and felt being sick again. Beads of sweat formed over her forehead. Her body was burning. It felt heavy as if someone had dumped a tonne of bricks onto her chest. That was also why she was breathing so heavily. Her hands spread across the grass to support herself but she was even struggling to do that.

'Poison.'

'Huh?' Rukia asked as she craned her neck to look up at Kisuke.

'The tablets Ichigo gave you were not Sub-Blood tablets. It was poison.'

'No.' Her eyes grew wide with shock. It was unbelievable. She even let out a nervous laugh. 'No, that... that can't be true.'

'Look at your fingernails.'

Rukia did as he suggested. All ten of her fingernails were inked black. The toxins had invaded her body and started to attack all her cells; slowly killing her. At this rate, she wasn't going to survive for long.

'No, this can't be!'

'RUKIA!'

Ichigo came screaming towards them. His robes were slashed everywhere and was covered with blood. Bruises and cuts covered his face too. He looked pretty beaten up but all he wanted to do was rush to Rukia's side. Her face was pale; almost lifeless. Her lips and nails seemed to look deadly black. He knelt down next to her and placed a hand on her shoulder.

'Rukia, are you okay?' Rukia shrugged Ichigo's hand off her.

'Don't touch me! You betrayed my trust! You betrayed me!' She forced herself too much and started to cough violently again. God, she thought she was going to pass out right there.

'Rukia...'

He was hurt by those words. He was hurt that she was rejecting him. But he knew he deserved it all because it was all true. He did betray her. Kisuke knew how much Rukia trusted Ichigo and he took advantage. Kisuke knew that Rukia would not suspect a thing and would happily take the pills. In the struggle between his masters' orders and a friends' loyalty Ichigo decided to side with his master. Now he was paying for it; regretting it.

A small wave washed through her. It wrapped around her heart and began to squeeze it. The virus within her was flooding into her heart and began eating it.

'ARGH!' she screamed and collapsed completely onto the floor. Her body began to shiver from the immense pain.

'Rukia!' He turned to his master. ''Shishou, please help her!' His voice filled with desperation almost cracked. Or perhaps it was his heart that was breaking after having to see Rukia dying.

'Without the cure she will die within 10 minutes.' He pulled out a small jar of green pills from his robes.

'Shishou...?'

'I can give you something to hold off the poison but Rukia-san, you must do everything I say.'

'NEVER!'

She knew he was trying to control her by not properly curing her. She would have to keep doing things for him forever. There was no way she was going to be a slave to such an evil man; the enemy of all vampires. How stupid was she to think that humans would want to live with vampires?

'Rukia, please.'

Ichigo was torn. He knew his master was trying to control her for some secret plan of his but he most certainly didn't want Rukia to die.

'NEVER!'

'Rukia-san, I admire how brave you are to not care if you die or not, but surely you won't neglect those who you love most, right?'

'What the hell are you talking about?'

'Did you not share your blood with anyone since you started taking the pills?' Rukia gasped as she remembered her heated encounter with Ulquiorra in the bathroom.

'Itoko-san!'

'You see, Rukia-chan, this poison is deep within your blood too,' Kisuke smirked. 'So whoever drinks your blood is also infected.' Rukia's eyes started to water.

_Itoko-san..._

'Now, if you don't want your loved one to die as well, I think you should comply with me.'

He unscrewed the jar and threw one pill towards them. Ichigo caught the pill with his hands and moved closer to Rukia to offer it to her. But she refused to acknowledge it so Ichigo pushed it into her mouth.

'Rukia, please,' he begged. 'Please swallow it.'

Her tears rolled off her cheeks as she accepted defeat and swallowed the pill. Kisuke opened his fan and began to leave.

'I will ask you for a favour later in return for another pill for your loved one. For now, you can return to your home and pretend nothing is out of the ordinary.'

'Rukia, gomenasai,' Ichigo whispered once they were alone.

'Stay away from me,' she hissed. Her body was slowly calming back down to normal but her anger was still there.

'Rukia, I really didn't mean for this to happen. He said he wouldn't hurt y-'

'I don't want to hear it!'

She picked herself off the floor but her legs felt weak from the whole experience and she stumbled. He stretched his arms out to hold her up.

'Don't touch me!' she shouted and quickly escaped from his hold. She didn't even want to be near him. 'I don't want to see your face ever again!'

She ignored the heartache splashed across Ichigo's face. Her words were spoken with venom but she didn't care anymore. She didn't care about_ him_ anymore. She could no longer stand seeing him and turned her back on him to walk away.

'Rukia...' She gave him half a glance like she was unsure whether to look at him.

'You shinigami's hate us vampires so much but you forget one important thing. You humans created us.' Ichigo gasped.

'Nani?'

'If we vampires are monsters, what does that make you humans?'

* * *

'Ah, my wonderful apprentice there you are! I thought-'

'Is it true?' Ichigo stormed back into Kisuke's house.

'What are you talking about, boy? I should be asking you about beating Ishida to a pulp. My guess is you've finally achieved your Bankai form.'

Kisuke eased Ishida into bed and tucked him into his bed sheets. You wouldn't be able to recognise Ishida even if you tried. His entire face was covered in purple swollen bruises. It looked like he had just experienced a battle of death.

'Did humans create vampires?' Ichigo screamed. Kisuke sighed.

'So she told you then?'

'And it's true?' Ichigo was losing it. He couldn't keep his voice down. 'Why are we killing what we created?'

'Because it was an experiment that went wrong!' Kisuke walked out the room to give some privacy to Ishida while Ichigo followed him outside into the garden.

'Why did we create them in the first place?'

'It was to create a super being. We wanted to create the most powerful human with amazing supernatural powers that lived a longer life. We could control these beings and use them. The experiment was a success but the vampires didn't want to be controlled anymore.' Ichigo startled to tremble as the truth unravelled.

'The vampires rebelled and wanted to live in their own right. It was deemed dangerous to let loose such powerful beings so we decided to destroy them instead. The vampires were furious and started to attack humans.'

'They were trying to defend themselves!' Ichigo reasoned.

'They are a threat to human society and must all be destroyed.'

'You think this only as failed experiment but we brought them into this world. How can you just kill them because it suits you! You can't just toy with someone's life and death like that!'

'That's the order of soul society! You are a shinigami too. Don't forget your place!'

Ichigo clenched his fists so hard they began to turn white. He was beginning to understand the war between humans and vampires. But which side was right? Which side was wrong? Which side should he help?

'All this time, I hated vampires for killing my entire family. But it was all mankinds' fault. If it wasn't for Soul Society, vampires would never have existed. There would never have been so much bloodshed. This war...'

He was lost. For many years, he dreamt of becoming a soul reaper but now it seemed meaningless. It seemed to be a waste of time. It all sounded so hypocritical. And he even hurt the woman he loved. Was it all worth it?

'Ichigo,' Kisuke placed a hand on his shoulder, 'the purebloods must be destroyed for the_ greater good_ of mankind.'

'Vampires are beasts disguised in our form. We can't let them soil our image, Ichigo.'

'But... but Rukia isn't like that. She's... I...'

'Purebloods are devious liars. They are good at playing on our emotions. Don't let it fool you.'

'But-'

'Trust me, I know. I was once betrayed by one.' Ichigo gasped. 'Please don't fail me now, Ichigo. I can spare Rukia-chan's life.' His eyes widened. 'I promise.'

* * *

She sat at her vanity top. Her finger brushed tenderly over her family picture as if she wanted to hold onto the moment. How did things spiral out of control? How did she end up in this situation?

_Itoko-san... _

Rukia's bubbled with tears again along with her guilt. Her own stupidity got her in the mess and now her beloved cousin was in danger too. She couldn't help scolding herself for being naive. How could she be so careless?

_Hopefully we can restore peace on Earth_

What Ichigo meant was that they were going to restore peace by bringing down the vampire society. Rukia now understood the meaning behind his words that day. He never actually promised that there would be peace between humans and vampires. He even looked guilty when he gave her the pills. She was just too blinded by trust to see it. Now it was all a little too late.

What do I do? What if he wants me to betray the vampire society? Can I trust Ichi-

KNOCK-KNOCK

She remained quiet. She was a mess. Her mind was all over the place. She was in no state to see or talk to anyone. Too much had already happened. She just wanted to be alone. Hopefully whoever it was would take the hint and move one.

KNOCK-KNOCK

'Go away,' she said firmly and immediately regretted it. She didn't mean to be rude. 'I'm tired.'

'Rukia, it's me.'

That voice. Deep and velvety smooth. One month. It had been a month since she last heard Byakuya's voice. She had been avoiding him all this time and boy did it seem like a long month. She had missed him. She wanted to deny it. She could deny it in front of him but she couldn't deny her heart.

'I know you've been hiding from me. I just wanted to say,' he paused like he was struggling to find the right words.

'I just wanted to say, I will respect your decision, whoever you choose. But whatever happens, my feelings for you will never change. I won't love any other woman. My heart belongs to you; only you. I will always protect you and look out for... if you need me that is. Please don't avoid me any longer.' He took a deep breath.

'I've missed you very much.'

He waited for a response and when there was none he decided to leave. Rukia could hear the sound of his footsteps getting fainter and fainted until they faded out completely. Her lips trembled and her tears began pouring out of her.

_Now I really do feel alone..._

_Pleave don't leave me... Byakuya..._

**

* * *

**

So that's it for this chapter. It's a little shorter than previous chapters but hopefully it gave a little bit more background to the story especially about the war between humans and vampires. Did it shock any of you? I didn't like making Rukia suffer but hope you found it powerful

**Please do leave a review and tell me what you think of the chapter. It is the biggest motivation any author can receive =) **

**Now for an EN for my last weeks' reviewers. I decided to write it here as I'm really poor with replying and if I do it in the story I won't forget... hopefully! **

GhostAlly**: Hope you find this chap interesting too! I tried to make it shocking and you were right to be suspicious**

RukiaCHAN1**: Thank you for the massive compliment. I only work to please my readers =) And as for Ulquiorra... well he is only a man after all especially seeing a naked woman haha**

RukiaYoukoMaShi**: Here's Byakuya... well kind of lol I wanted to add some ByaRuki moments but it didn't really fit with the chapter. Gomen!**

Vicky73**: Will you like this chapter too? My sincere gratitude for reviewing every chapter of mine. Love you! Byakuya will be in the next chapter. Promise! Well I have a vile of Byakiya's blood on offer to keep you company while you wait for the next update if you're interested? Actually I might keep it for myself if you don't mind hehe**

1SuperKawaii**: Thanks for the compliment. You're always here every chapter x Hope you enjoy this one too x Sorry for the wait. I will continue this story. I have the ending already in my head but it's only a draft. Not too sure how long this story is going to be but I like to play around with some ideas lol**

loveyouso**: I haven't actually seen a single episode of True Blood but will do in the future now that you mention it. Hopefully my ideas are too similar to theirs =p Glad you enjoy mine though x**

Omili**: Thank you so much for your review! I love harems too even though I find them really hard to write. I just pray I'm doing it right haha. Since you like AUs I'll let you know that I have another AU fic in mind but I'll have to finish this one first =p We'll learn more about Urahara in the up and coming chapter. Do tell me about your thoughts on this chapter too x **

Nathalie Shiffer**: If I'm honest, I do feel sorry for Ulquiorra like most of my readers. At the beginning I intended this story to be a ByaRuki pairing but I've grown to really like me choose! I'm so torn between the two. And that's how Rukia feels and I'm glad you feel it too x**

AlaeMori:**Thanks for your review. I really liked your idea on those pills changing Rukia and I took a little inspiration from that and added a bit of a twist to create this chapter. Thanks for that! x**

**Thanks everyone. Ja x**


	10. Blood Bank

**Hey people! I'm finally here with an update. I'm so, so sorry for the delay. To be honest, I lost a little confidence and kept putting it off. And then I got a little carried away with my new story, Cupid Makes a Mistake. But I have to thank all my reviewers who really helped inspire me to write another chapter: Nathalie Shiffer, 1SuperKawaii, Darth-Taisha, Vicky73, onlyluna, L, loveyouso, silverqueen, seras3791, and DRUON. I am so grateful for each and every one of them x**

**Vicky73 – Thank you, again, for your messages! X If it wasn't for you asking me to update this story every week I don't think I would have typed a single word =p You must have a 'lemon' complex lol (well okay, me too! HA-HA!)**

**L – Special thanks to you for your back to back reviews! You really cheered me up x**

**silverqueen – I find vampire stories just so tempting... And Byakuya as a charming pureblood is real HOT lol**

**seras3791 – Thank you for your sweet compliment. This chap might not be as hot but hopefully you'll still like it x**

**DRUON – Let me know what you think of this chap. Hopefully, it doesn't disappoint. I am truly sorry for the wait x**

**And for those who also read Cupids, I will get writing the next chapter soon... Maybe tomorrow... **_**maybe**_** lol**

**This chapter goes out to all my reviewers. Love you all! x**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach just this plot**

**

* * *

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Blood Bank

Mild anger began to coarse through Ulquiorra as he watched Byakuya step away from Rukia's bedroom door. How many more times did he have to chase away other men from his fiancé? He wished they could wed as soon as possible. Maybe then, when she is finally his, everyone would give up on pursuing her. But he had to wait. Their wedding was pushed back. Everything was delayed. This whole ceasefire business with the humans was most important not to mention the Sub-Blood tests. Aizen was quite serious about the matter.

As Byakuya walked down the hall he noticed the last person he wanted to see. He stood only a few feet away from Ulquiorra who had the same passive face as usual. Byakuya never saw him lose his temper. To be more accurate, _no one_ ever saw him angry.

'What business do you have with my fiancé?' His voice raised a little. He just couldn't remain calm when it concerned Rukia.

_At least he always puts Rukia at first place..._

A half smile appeared on Byakuya's face. It was rather awkward. It didn't belong there. That's what he felt. His eyes closed as he took a deep breath. He took his time to make up his mind. Once his eyes were opened he tried to ignore his attachment to Rukia; pretend that his heart wasn't hurting.

_I can't believe I'm about to say this..._

'Take care of her. Make her happy.'

Ulquiorra's eyes grew big with surprise. His calm resolve was finally broken. Those words were simple but powerful enough to actually shock him. That didn't happen often.

_So he's allowing me to be with Rukia? _

_How very gentleman of him_

_How very __**noble**__ of him..._

Ulquiorra watched as Byakuya slowly walked past him. All of a sudden he stopped and looked back up as if he had forgotten something. His misty grey eyes darted across to meet the emerald eyes of his love rival.

'If you hurt her, I swear I'll make you pay for it. And you_ will_ regret it.'

* * *

Rukia's tears would not stop. She slid down along the door until she fell to the floor. Her body shook as her sobs got harder.

_My heart belongs to you... _

_...only you_

Byakuya's footsteps were fast disappearing. He was slowly leaving her. She was slowly losing him. Bit by bit.

_Please... _

_Don't..._

All that was left was a slight muffled tone in the far distance.

_Don't leave me!_

Rukia pushed herself up. She weren't sure what she would do or say. But she felt if she didn't do something it would mean the end of her and Byakuya. It would be over completely.

_You __**can't**__ leave me!_

She opened the door and rushed out to the hallway. It was so dark but she knew where she was going; who she wanted to find.

'Wait! Bya-'

Her voice got caught in her throat. The words were burning her; desperately trying to get out. But the sight of Ulquiorra, her fiancé, was stopping her even if Byakuya was only standing a little away.

_Who should I choose?_

'Rukia, my dear...' Ulquiorra whispered and chose for her.

Her heart raced faster as Ulquiorra walked nearer towards her; closing the gap between them. Her eyes caught the sight of Byakuya staring right back at her. He looked in pain. Rukia's secret glances at Byakuya did not go unnoticed.

_No one else can have you_

She gasped as he cupped her face bringing it towards his. His hot breath tickled at her throat before he ran his hot tongue along her pulse. He felt it pump fast. The sweet smell of her lavender perfume mixed with her natural scent was intoxicating. He was drowning in it.

'Itoko... san...'

Her voice hitched a little higher as Ulquiorra pushed his lips to her neck and sucked at it. Little tingles shot through her entire body.

'Please... don't-'

Without warning, Ulquiorra bit into her flesh. Hard. Her blood gushed out and dribbled down her neck and soaked her clothes. Ulquiorra stifled a grunt as he drank greedily from her. It was probably painful. He never had fed on her so roughly before. But in that moment, when he saw Rukia and Byakuya exchanging glances, a jealous rage hit him. He had to remind Byakuya that she was _his_ now. But more importantly, he was reminding Rukia herself that she was now_ his_ woman. She now _belonged_ to him.

She closed her eyes and held onto his shoulders for support. Her nails dug slightly into his white uniform. A little groan from pain and the colour on her face turned a little pale.

'Itoko-san... too much... Ah...' She winced in pain when he chewed on her some more.

Ulquiorra opened his eyes and looked directly at Byakuya while he continued to feed on Rukia. He slowly withdrew his fangs and licked his lips that were covered in blood; savouring the flavour. Some blood fell from his mouth to his chin and under his neck but he didn't care. He leant down and began licking at the blood over her neck with long and slow strokes and never broke eye contact with Byakuya. He even ran his tongue over the puncture wounds which healed immediately.

The blood tasted wonderful. He wanted to bathe in her blood if he could. It belonged to him. Only him. And he wanted to make sure Byakuya understood that. In fact, he wanted everyone to know it.

* * *

Byakuya's blood boiled as he watched Ulquiorra touch Rukia, penetrate her body, drink her delicious blood. He wanted her blood all to himself. He wanted her body all to himself. He wanted to tear Ulquiorra away from her.

'Itoko-san... too much... Ah...'

Rukia was suffering or was she indulging in pleasure? Or perhaps both? Byakuya's entire body stiffened.

_No, Rukia, don't let him touch you..._

_Push him away..._

His rage grew as he watched Ulquiorra lick at Rukia's small nape. Byakuya knew he was doing it deliberately. He was marking his territory. Ulquiorra was looking directly at him and telling him who Rukia belonged to. Byakuya clenched his fists so hard he almost drew blood as his nails dug into his skin.

He was in agony. Every part of him wanted to take back what he said and runaway with Rukia. But was that what _she_ wanted?

_Itoko-san is a good man..._

_He's looked after me and protected me for all these years... _

_Everything he does is for me..._

He knew very well that Rukia would never forgive herself if she abandoned Ulquiorra. She might even hate him for making her choose between him and Ulquiorra. And Byakuya most definitely didn't want that. So he did something he might regret in the future. He swallowed his pride and walked away. He had to force himself to ignore it.

_If you still want to be friends with Rukia ignore it_

_If you don't want to risk losing her ignore it_

_If you want Rukia to be happy ignore it_

_Ignore how you heart is breaking. _

_Ignore how you want to make Rukia yours. _

_Ignore it all... All for Rukia..._

* * *

'Captain Hinamori, Urahara Kisuke has arrived,' a middle-aged servant said as he bowed.

Her hand slipped and her brush jerked the black calligraphy ink off the paper. The petite Captain of the 5th Division was writing up a report. Now it was ruined and she had to start all over again. She let out a short sigh.

'Please, show him in.'

She wore a standard black Shinigami robe under the white Captain haori uniform. Her black hair was fixed into a bun at the back covered with a white tied cloth. The short ends of her hair fell gently over her cheeks. You could say that Hinamori Momo looked rather _normal_, but after seven years of serving in the Soul Society, she managed to become a captain. There was nothing normal about that.

She placed down her calligraphy brush onto the ink rest and sat back in her chair. Not long after, Kisuke entered the room and bowed at her.

'Good evening, Captain Hinamori'

'It's good to see you again, Captain,' she said with a beaming smile. She always looked so innocent like butter wouldn't melt.

'I haven't been your captain for a very long time. Even my office now belongs to you.'

Both shared a slightly uncomfortable smile. It had been such a long time since they last met. So much had changed. After Kisuke was forced to retire, his vice-captain, Hinamori Momo was later promoted to take his position. Kisuke felt rather strange being within Soul Society divisions after so many years. But he had missed it.

'Please, do take a seat,' she referred to the chair closest to her office desk.

'Domo.'

'So, I hear from Yumichika that you wanted to see me regarding the purebloods. Are you planning on taking revenge on them?'

'My eyes are set on their Skeleton Key.'

Momo's brown eyes grew big. Now she was definitely interested. Legend had it that the Skeleton Key opened the gates to Hell. No human was even known to have seen the key. But it was lead to believe that the key fell into the hands of the purebloods and heavily guarded by them.

'So you want to use it to send all the vampires into Hell?' she asked. 'Does it even exist?'

'If it does, I'll definitely find a way to find it. This will regain my pride within the Soul Society. But I will need your assistance. See it as a favour from your old master.'

'Of course, but why are you so certain you will find the key?' she questioned and raised an eyebrow. She wasn't truly convinced.

'I have someone on the inside that will fulfil my plans.'

'Is that so...?' A little smirk came and went from Momo. It was so faint Kisuke barely noticed it.

* * *

'URGH...!' one of the guards at the Secret Chamber groaned.

'Oi! What's wrong with y-'

The other guard's voiced disappeared too. Both of them were experiencing the same pain. Their bowels rumbled and pain coiled through their intestines. It was a bad spout of food poisoning. One was unable to hold his sword anymore and dropped it recklessly onto the floor as he ran off.

'Hey! Where are you going? We're not supposed to leave this chamber unguarded!'

'I can't hold it in anymore!'

'Wait! You can't-'

Another surge of pain shot through his bowels. The pain was too great that meant he had to find a toilet. FAST.

'Stuff it! It'll only be a few minutes,' he told himself before running off in the same direction as the other guard.

Soon, the hallway was empty again and Rukia stepped out from around the corner. She had deliberately placed drugs into the guard's lunch so they would get diarrhoea. They had no choice but to leave their positions giving Rukia the perfect opportunity to step inside the Secret Chambers.

As she lifted the heavy steel bolts and creaked open the heavy door she wondered why all the vampires were forbidden from such a place. It puzzled her even more when Kisuke asked her to sneak in to find the Skeleton Key. She had no idea what he was talking about but since she had no choice in the matter she just went along with it.

It was dark. The castle was always poorly lit because vampires were sensitive to light but the Secret Chamber was almost pitch black. Rukia kind of worked out that it was a small corridor with a little gleam of light at the end that escaped from around the corner. It even smelt a little funny. Rukia could smell blood. A lot of it. And it seemed to belong to many different people. There was so much different smells all mixed into one she couldn't quite tell what or who the blood belonged to. It didn't help when it was also shadowed over by the essence of various chemicals.

A sudden chill crept upon Rukia. She seemed a little scared to find out what lied ahead of her. What was she about to walk into?

_Why do I suddenly feel so nervous?_

* * *

'That's enough,' Yoruichi ordered and held a firm hand over Ulquiorra's.

Ulquiorra remained looking calm but he wasn't backing down. He didn't care if she was another pureblood or Aizen's latest whore. He was the King's most important soldier. He wasn't going to be bossed around by anyone.

Yoruichi was losing her patience. This man in front of her always forgot his place. He often challenged her even though she possessed the second most powerful pureblood line. Her golden eyes flickered.

'Did you hear what I said?' She spoke with a little more force.

_You __**will**__ do as I say_

* * *

Bravely and slowly, Rukia took a few more steps into the huge room. It looked like a basement. It was damp and that funny smell she could sense previously thickened. There was a buzzing and humming noise coming from what looked like medical machinery. Her eyes peeled wider in horror when she took a closer look at the machinery.

The entire room was filled with several medical white pods like massive containers. There must have been at least 20-30 of them. Inside each pod was a body with several tubes and drips branching out from them. It was hard to tell if the bodies were alive or dead as they had their eyes closed. It looked rather gruesome to her.

'That's enough.'

Rukia's head swirled around to where the voice came from and decided to creep over towards it. As she walked she couldn't help but glance at the different bodies she walked past.

_Why do these people look somewhat... familiar?_

'Did you hear what I said?'

Rukia looked up. In the near distance, two figures stood in front of another medical pod. She instantly recognised them. The atmosphere felt quite tense and she opened her mouth as to speak but something more important caught her attention. That particular pod contained a body she most certainly knew.

_It can't be...!_

Rukia's eyes tred to look harder. He was really tall. His face was white and had a strong neck. His spiky hair was black but looked slightly blue in the bright light.

_No, it's impossible! They said he was dead; killed by a-_

But she saw the most convincing evidence. The Shiba family crest was etched onto his arm in black ink. Who would have thought that Kaien would re-appear in front of Rukia's very eyes once again? But how could this be?

'WHAT IS GOING ON HERE?' Rukia interrupted the silence.

Her voice caught the attention of both Ulquiorra and Yoruichi. His hand pulled away from the buttons that functioned the pod. He looked at Rukia and back at Kaien in the pod a few times and began to lose his stoic composure.

'Rukia, I can explain. This... This-'

'_You_ said to me that Kaien-sensei was executed by a Shinigami...!' Ulquiorra began to panic as Rukia raised her voice.

'_You_ said you saw it with your own eyes! What... Why is he... What's going on? I don't understand! You said he was dead!'

Rukia was babbling. She was very much confused. Was Kaien dead or was he still alive? Why was he in a pod? What about the other people in the pods? Were they vampires too? Or were they human? But she was angry at something more worrying.

'Why?' Rukia's voice cracked a little. 'Why did you lie to me?'

Ulquiorra got caught out. He never thought she would find out. This place was absolutely forbidden. It was a secret project. Only those with special permission from Aizen were allowed to step inside. He was totally lost for words.

'I-'

'He didn't lie. Kaien is as good as dead anyway.' Rukia's eyes began to fill with tears and glared right at Yoruichi.

'What do you mean?'

'I mean-'

'Yoruichi,' Ulquiorra barked as if to stop her from revealing anything.

'His body is dead. He's only kept alive by the machine. All we want is his blood. If he wasn't a pure-'

'I think you have said quite enough,' Ulquiorra hissed.

'His blood?' Rukia asked.

'Welcome to our pureblood bank,' Yoruichi continued.

'I said that's enough!' Ulquiorra ordered.

He never once raised his voice like he just did. Sensing that she had taken her little game a little too far Yoruichi decided to step away and out of the room.

'A blood bank? You're harvesting his blood? You can't do that!' Rukia cried.

'You don't understand.' He walked closer to her and pressed a secure hold onto her shoulders.

'Our pureblood numbers were falling,' he continued. 'Some vampires had to be sacrificed to keep our blood supply. It's all to save the entire pureblood population as a whole.'

'_Sacrifice_? Did you ever ask Kaien-sensei if he wanted to be sacrificed? Did any of these people get a choice?'

Her hands gestured to the rest of the purebloods in the other pods. She was incredibly angry. How could her cousin, the one she respected the most, be so cruel? How could he do it? And this was her beloved sensei...!

All those vampires that disappeared, ran away or got killed by soul reapers were in fact taken for the blood bank. Lies. They were all lies.

She couldn't bear looking at him anymore. She was mortified. And it was all making her sick. She couldn't breathe and needed to get away from the Secret Chamber as soon as possible.

Ulquiorra's heart clenched as he watched her turn around. He feared she was going to leave him; that it was over for them. He panicked so much he clutched at her wrist with a bit too much force.

'Don't touch me!' Rukia shook off his touch.

'Rukia...' he pleaded.

'And what about nee-san?' She hesitated for a moment. She actually feared the answer. 'Is she here too?'

He didn't dare answer her. It would definitely kill her. But she knew already just from his body language. He couldn't even look her in the eyes. That guilty look on his face said it all.

'I hate you.'

Those words were spoken low and soft but they sure cut him deep. She might as well have knifed him in the chest. His heart twisted in knots. Now he got to watch her leave him behind as his world started to fall apart. He called out to her several times but she ignored them all and ran away.

_It feels like I'm dying..._

* * *

She ran and ran. It was like she couldn't get far away enough from it all. Everything was a mess. Everything was just a lie. She trusted Ichigo but betrayed her. She trusted Ulquiorra but he took away the two precious people she had. The tears wouldn't stop pouring even if she could control them.

She walked aimlessly on the rooftops of the castle. She needed some air. It was like she going to pass out. Her eyes were about to turn to the stars when she sensed a familiar energy even if it was shrinking.

'Stay,' she whispered.

* * *

A warm excitement flowed within Byakuya as he saw the little beauty. Every part of him wanted to walk up to her but he was scared. He was scared that he wouldn't be able to stop himself from embracing her and offering himself to her _again_. Instead, he decided to curl away and disappear into the shadows.

'Stay.'

His blood pumped faster as soon as he heard Rukia's words. Of course, she had sensed him but more importantly, she didn't want him to leave. Although he was over the moon he just stepped into the moonlight and gave her a weak smile. Actually, he was uncertain what she was feeling or what she wanted.

'Byakuya, take me away from this place...'

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Ah, so things are finally getting better for ByaRuk finally. I know a lot of you have been screaming for them to get together especially telling Rukia to make up her mind =p

**I got my inspiration from some vampire films, one was Daybreakers, which gave me the blood bank idea. I wrote that scene so many times (sigh)**

**Ooh and I even placed one of my story titles in this chap... Marking his territory... well sort of lol Random, I know.**

**I'm not sure when I'll be able to update this. I've got some training courses coming up soon so I'll need to prepare for that... Anyways, I hope you enjoyed reading this. Let me know what you think. All reviews welcomed. Ja x**


	11. Secret Garden

**Hey everyone! Gomen, gomen, for such a late update. I've been so busy with work all my time is drained. But all your reviews really did motivate me to update faster. Many thanks to all my lovely reviewers: Nathalie Shiffer, 1SuperKawaii, Rukes, loveyouso, tokiko76, RukiaCHAN1, Someone I love, Rose of Ice, Vicky73, DRUON, Darth-Taisha, L, seras3791, silverqueen, Yuniee and xxUlquiorraLoveRxx. I loved them all! X And I love your PMs too x**

**Vicky73 – About your complex I mentioned before... (see below!)**

**DRUON – Hopefully you like this chapter more than the last one**

**L – Will this satisfy your **_**hunger**_**...?**

**seras3791 – Love is definitely complex. But I think things are looking better for ByaRuki... **

**silverqueen – Byakuya would sexy even in a waste paper bag! Lol You'll like this chapter!**

**And for those who also read my Cupids story, I'm not sure when I can update the next chapter. My schedule is really busy next week so I apologize in advance. But I have the chapter all planned out in my mind and I think I'll be changing it to an M-rating. It really is for language mainly but do let me know about your views on lemons for the story because I know some readers don't like reading lemons.**

**This chapter goes out to all my reviewers but especially to tokiko76 for being my 100****th**** review for this story! And also to isara-love for your lovely message. Love you all! x**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach just this plot**

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Secret Garden

_Byakuya, take me away from this place..._

He repeated those words over and over to himself to make certain he hadn't heard wrong. She was probably only a few feet away but he dared not to take a step closer. On so many occasions was he rejected and filled with disappointment. Yes, Kuchiki Byakuya, like most people, was actually scared of being refused... And to be refused _again_...

A little sniff from her captured more of his attention. The full moon's light bounced off her raven hair and lit up her face in an angelic way. Her violet eyes were slightly puffy and glistened with fresh tears. It was obvious that she had just been crying. He felt a mild anger slowly creeping over him. Someone had definitely hurt her.

'Rukia...' he whispered in his usual low tone trying not to give away his fury.

'Please...'

His heart ached as he watched her eyes fill with tears again. And he automatically took a step towards her in an attempt to protect her.

'Take me away,' she mumbled. Her lips quivered and new tears began to roll off her eyes. 'I don't want to be here anymore!' she wailed.

'Ru-'

They both heard several quick thudding footsteps and turned to where the noise was coming from. Suddenly, the door to the rooftop swung open in a thrust. It banged against the wall and shook violently.

* * *

Ulquiorra ran up the stairway to the rooftop. His strides quickened the more he panicked. Never had he seen Rukia so distraught.

_I hate you..._

Her little voice choked out so much venom in so little words. The bitterness in her eyes confused with betrayal and disappointment sent a chill down his spine. She was leaving him. He knew it for sure so he chased after her; hoping that he could salvage the remaining bond they had left. .. if it was possible...?

And then it struck him. A shriek of energy uncovered itself. It was barely noticeable but Ulquiorra had lived long enough to detect the subtle difference of every pureblood. The Kuchiki members had a distinct pattern and Ulquiorra could guarantee who was also on the rooftop with Rukia. He ran faster. With a huge powerful thrust, he threw the door out of his way.

'Rukia!' Ulquiorra cried.

Incredible fear hit him seeing his love rival standing dangerously close to _his_ Rukia. He was frightened of losing her. Was she still his fiancé? Would she still have him after everything that had happened?

She turned away; unable to even look at him. She didn't even want to be _near_ him. It was too painful for her to stomach.

'Leave me alone.' Her voice was laced with bitterness.

So that was her answer? No, he couldn't allow it. Not after everything they had been through. Not after everything he had done for her. How could she defy him?

'Rukia, please,' he walked closer; fast approaching them, 'let me explain. I-'

Ulquiorra's eyes widened when Byakuya stepped in front of Rukia and blocking his way to her.

_If you hurt her, I swear I'll make you pay for it. And you __**will**__ regret it_

The two male purebloods exchanged icy looks.

_How dare you get in my way!_

'I am talking to my _fiancé_,' he spat. His green eyes glowed with passionate anger.

'Did you not hear the lady? She does not wish to see you,' Byakuya deadpanned.

'This has _nothing_ to do with _you_,' Ulquiorra hissed.

'Rukia...' He diverted around Byakuya to take Rukia's hand but she shrugged off his touch.

'Get off me!' she yelled and hid behind Byakuya. More tears threatened to fall.

'Rukia, please,' he begged. 'I had no choice. It was-'

Byakuya quickly pulled Rukia away from Ulquiorra with one hand. His other hand, simultaneously, brought out a small black cube. Soon after he crushed the cube between his long fingers both him and Rukia was swallowed up in a black and white light in an instant. In a blink of an eye they vanished into thin air right before Ulquiorra's eyes. And he was left all on his own _again_...

'Rukia... You _can't_ leave me,' he whispered into the howling winds.

'I _won't_ let you...'

* * *

'Rukia...' a low whisper came to her senses. Her body wobbled slightly.

'Rukia...' the voice called again.

'Mmm?' she murmured as she gradually peeled open her eyes.

The subtle silver light from the moon dazzled her slightly. They were sitting in an oriental pavilion on chairs made out of grey-white stone. A small table made out of the same material sat in the centre of the pavilion with a neat Chinaware tea set hand-painted in royal blue and white detail. The six pillars and framework of the pavilion were of a vibrant red. Several famous poems written in Japanese calligraphy stretched along the edges of the ceiling. Dark green tiles piled up into a shape of a prism with four triangular faces created the roof of the pavilion.

'Where are we?'

She sat up straight to overlook into the huge Japanese garden in front of them. Byakuya stood up to walk out of the pavilion.

'This is my Secret Garden in another dimension,' he answered.

'Another dimension?' she asked and followed in his footsteps like a shadow.

'Yes, I come here sometimes to get some peace.'

'But... How did we get here so fast?' She raised a curious eyebrow. 'I thought you have to recite a long incantation to travel between dimensions?'

'Indeed. But I used a Caja Negacion. Once crushed, it manipulates negation fields to transport the user to a designated dimension in great speed.'

'I see. I've never heard of it before...'

'That's because only those with the Kuchiki name has a Caja Negacion; each with their unique dimension. It was designed to be used in life-threatening circumstances to protect the bloodline.'

'Hai.' Rukia nodded.

'What do you think of this place?' he asked when they stopped walking.

She took the time to regard the entire garden. It was huge. It felt so tranquil; peaceful. There was a beautiful view no matter where your head turned to. Several rocks and finely trimmed green bushes of all shapes and sizes were dotted around the whole place. Water cascaded down a tall rock like a miniature waterfall. The water coiled through the garden into a huge pond located in the centre of the garden. The pond was full of water lilies and koi. Byakuya made sure it was just the same as his mother's favourite pond. The only different feature was that of a low bridge arching over the whole pond and a stone lantern perched in the middle of the pond.

Everything was beautiful but nothing stood out more than the one hundred blooming cherry blossom trees that surrounded them. The gentle warm wind swayed past them. A crowd of pink petals rained down and danced around them. The grass they stood on was covered with millions of pink petals like tinted snow. Rukia turned to face Byakuya once more.

'Very beautiful,' she answered.

'Yes, very beautiful indeed,' he purred.

Something shocking; electrical past between them as their eyes locked onto one another's. He lifted his hand up and stroked the back of his fingers along her porcelain face. Shivers coursed through her body at the gentle yet sensual contact. His touch followed to her chin and he slowly brushed his index finger along her bottom lip. Her heart went crazy and began churning irregular beats.

'May I kiss those beautiful lips of yours?' he asked.

Perhaps it wasn't actually necessary of him to ask for her permission since they had already shared a kiss before. But he wanted to be sure that she wanted him. He didn't want to force himself on her nor did he think he could manage more rejection. A man's pride could only be wounded so many times until he can no longer bear it.

A rosy tint flushed over her cheeks at the question. She grew nervous and she was certain that he could detect it from how her lips quivered slightly. It embarrassed her a little so she moved her eyes a little away from Byakuya. Her shyness kept her from speaking but she managed a very slow and little nod. A smile grew over his face.

_How adorable..._

In slow motion he bent his body, leaned his head closer and brushed his lips to hers. His heart leapt ahead of him when she kissed him back and held onto his black shirt. He craved more and pushed his tongue inside her. One hand held the back of her head and the other hand rested on her delicate neck while he deepened the kiss. Their tongues circled and massaged each other's.

Rukia let out a moan beyond her control only adding more excitement to him. She had dreamt about him touching her the way he was currently doing. She had dreamt about this so many times. It didn't feel right when Ulquiorra kissed her; drank from her. It was Byakuya she wanted. That, she just couldn't deny to herself or to her heart. Her heart was racing beyond belief.

Byakuya wanted more of her. His lust was overtaking his mind. He eased their bodies down to the floor and layed Rukia's back onto the bed or cherry blossoms. All the while he never broke their kiss. His body arched over hers but began to rub his abdomen into her body. His hand travelled away from her neck down to her chest and fondled her breast. It was fleshy and he could feel her nipple was turning hard.

'Mmm...' she whispered.

Her mind was going wild with so many new sensations. But it felt so good to her. A throbbing feeling appeared somewhere from the lower regions of her body. It was difficult to pin-point where exactly. Was it her stomach? Was it her abdomen? Was it-

'Uh...' she moaned.

Byakuya had stopped fondling her breast to touch the flesh under her skirt. He rubbed her womanhood up and down through her silk panties. His kisses made their way to her neck and occasionally licked at her pulse. The passion within him soared to greater heights.

_Rukia, you have no idea how you make me feel..._

_... How I feel knowing I'm giving you pleasure_

What was this feeling; this ache she was feeling inside her? It was tingling. It was burning yet she was craving for more of his ministrations. She even opened her legs wider to make it easier for him to access her most private area.

Byakuya moved his hand faster and pushed a finger against her flimsy fabric. He could feel her heat and slight wetness seeping through her panties. He was very aware of his own arousal too and kept rubbing it against her thigh.

_I want you..._

His hand disappeared inside her underwear and delved one long finger into her heated core. She gasped in pleasure and surprise. He admired her flushed face as he pushed his finger in and out of her hot slit. The tips of her forehead glistened in mild sweat. Her lips parted as she kept gasping and she occasionally bit her bottom lip. Her chest rose up and down quickly as she struggled to breathe normally. It was all so seductive to him and he continued to cover his entire finger with her wetness.

'Uh...!' she gasped. 'Byakuya... mmm...' Her voice was raw. Much to Byakuya's satisfaction.

He sneaked his tongue into her mouth again giving her double the pleasure. He was drowning in her moans. His finger curled inside and stroked her inner walls. Rukia thought her brain was going to explode. His every touch was magnifying all her sensations. It made her feel incredibly _alive_.

_More..._

Byakuya's lips pulled away and returned to her neck. His hot tongue swiped along her sensitive flesh. He opened his mouth wide ready to feast on her.

_...this poison is deep within your blood too_

_... whoever drinks your blood is also infected_

Rukia's eyes shot open at remembering Urahara Kisuke's chilling words.

_If Byakuya drinks my blood...!_

'No!'

Rukia pushed at his chest just in time before he pricked at her skin. Their bodies were still huffing and puffing from their intimate contact. But she noticed the hurt and confused look in his face. He pulled his head back a little away from her.

'Do you not want me?' His voice hinted a little sadness.

* * *

'Rukia!' Ulquiorra cried as he stormed through the door.

Orihime was so shocked at the sudden yell she dropped the item she was holding onto the floor. Her brown eyes panicked.

'Ulquiorra-san...?' she gasped.

He was more than disappointed. He had looked everywhere but Rukia was nowhere to be found. His anger at Byakuya was growing rapidly. He was running out of places to search.

'What business do you have here in Rukia's room?' he asked coldly.

'I...' she paused to glance at the floor. 'Nothing.'

Ulquiorra caught her trying to push something under the bed with her shoe. It usually wouldn't be of any interest to him but this was Rukia's room. He didn't want Rukia to be burdened with any trouble. He took a few steps closer to her.

'What is it you're trying to conceal?' Orihime gasped.

'Eh... I don't know what you're talking about, Ulquiorra-san.'

'Don't make me repeat myself,' he threatened.

Orihime's eyes filled with tears and showed him the item she was trying so desperately to hide. She had been found out and Ulquiorra was sure to report back to her father. This was the end. Aizen would definitely cast her out onto the streets for sure...

* * *

Byakuya turned his head away partly disappointed and partly hurt.

'No, it's not that,' Rukia quickly replied.

'Of course I do.' She cupped his face towards her again.

'Tell me you want me,' he urged.

'I want you,' she purred.

She sat up and kissed him fully on the mouth. This time it was her who was first to deepen the kiss. Lust, passion, desire, call it whatever you will, she was hungry for it _all_. Her little hand went to unzip his trousers and disappeared inside. Softly, she caressed his manhood through his boxers. A small grunt escaped Byakuya's lips. Her lips leant close to his ear.

'I want _all_ of you,' she whispered seductively.

The offer was too tempting to refuse and he frantically unbuckled his belt. Rukia's hand hooked under the elastic waistband of his boxers and travelled lower. He sucked in a deep breath of air when she stroked along his length. How many times had he fantasized about her pleasuring him? And here, she was touching his sex for real!

Byakuya soon dropped his trousers and boxers around his kneecaps. She could already tell from the touch that he was very well endowed. His manhood was already hard with desire. It was so sensitive to her slow long strokes. Rukia wrapped her entire hand over his member and began tugging at it.

'Uh...' he groaned.

Then all of a sudden her movements stopped. He looked down to just catch Rukia with her tongue half out. She began licking his length all over.

'Uh...' he whimpered. To his surprise, she quickly took him fully in her mouth next.

'Ah...!' Byakuya moaned at the extreme intimate contact. He had to hold onto her shoulders for support.

The heat and wetness from her mouth and tongue on his manhood sent tingles throughout his body. It felt amazing. No dream or fantasy could compare to the real thing. Without realising it, he pushed his member more into her face. He enjoyed watching her sucking at his member too. He liked seeing how his length disappeared in and out of her quicker and quicker. How her cute lips were engulfed around his sensitive flesh. And hearing the slurrping noise coming from her hot mouth. It was all too _erotic_. What made it more seductive was that she was watching him back as she was eating him. A notch inside him twisted. He knew he wasn't going to last for long if Rukia kept this up. No, he didn't want that. He desperately wanted to come together with her.

_I want to be inside you..._

_Make you mine..._

'Ru...' he panted, 'Rukia...'

He applied a little pressure onto her shoulders and she instantly knew to move away from his abused member. He tilted her head up to kiss him. There was a slight salty taste to the kiss. Gently, he pushed her body to lie down on the petals once more. He teased her tongue with his as his hands fumbled around to take her panties off. He wanted to see the rest of her naked body but his body was begging to be inside her; penetrate her. _Now_. The ache was so bad he couldn't ignore it any longer.

_I want you so badly..._

Rukia recognised the animal lust within him that matched her own. She complied with the desire; gave into it and lifted her hips up to allow Byakuya remove her white panties completely. He proudly sniffed at them. They were already soaked with arousal. Arousal caused by _him_. Only him.

Rukia blushed at the sight. She was embarrassed for being so wet. Now that the silk fabric was removed her arousal dribbled down her thighs. Byakuya helped bend her knees, opened her legs wider and lifted her skirt up so he could admire her treasures fully. Her entrance was rising up and down together with her ragged breath. The smell of her scent was intoxicating him; teasing him. His soft hands stroked up along her bare thigh and went to lick up her wetness. Soon, his tongue was inside her sweet core. She moaned loudly as his tongue tickled her insides.

'Ah...!'

It was such an amazing feeling she even pushed his head more into her sex. Stars dazzled her when he sucked at her clit in between licks to her moist cave. Her juices came gushing into his face and he lapped them all up.

'Please...' her plea ripped through her throat. 'Byakuya... I want to be yours...!'

All his ministrations felt wonderful but it really was torturing at the same time. She was aching to receive him.

_Mark me as your woman..._

Byakuya sat up; knowing he had properly prepared her body for the immense pleasure he was about to offer her. As he kissed her passionately, he pushed his member into her tight centre. She tensed at the foreign intrusion to her most private area. He was thick as well as long; filling her fully.

He relished in the sensation. Her tight walls felt wonderfully arousing around his sex. All her juices made it so much easier for him to sink inside her. He was very patient; only making slow and steady moves while keeping an eye on her reaction. He wanted to keep the pain to a minimum.

It hurt at first. That couldn't be helped. She was a virgin still and he was incredibly big. But he was so gentle with her. His slow pumps were giving her a pleasure she never experienced. Her little moans returned; a sign that the pain was fast disappearing.

'More...' she begged.

Byakuya was delighted that she was finding pleasure from his moves. He quickened his pace; burying his member deeper inside her heat. There was a lot of sloshing noise as his sex rubbed against hers with all her juices around them.

'Uh!' he groaned.

He felt her walls tighten and clamping around his stiffness. All the waves of pleasure washed through their bodies. Their body sweat increased as tingles and electricity shot up their sex. Both felt a tightening sensation pushing them over the edge. Byakuya's member grew bigger inside her.

'Rukia... I'm going to...'

'AH!' they both screamed.

He squirted his hot seed deep into her slit as they both climaxed. It was official. She was now his and no one was going to take her away from him again. They belonged to each other. Nothing was to separate them from now on.

He didn't pull out of her entrance. He wanted to savour the feeling. His delicate fingers moved her long bang away from her face. She never looked more beautiful. Her skin glowed like she was alive. The adorable blush filled her cheeks. The sweat droplets dotted over her forehead. Her mouth stayed open trying to catch her breath back. It gave him the opportunity to steal another deep kiss from her.

'I love you...' he whispered into her mouth.

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**Anyway, I hope you enjoyed reading this. Let me know what you think. All reviews welcomed. Ja x**

Is it me or is it getting _**hot**_**in here! So that was _the_ chapter, the one most people have been waiting for (VICKY! Ahem!). Don't mention about my naughty thoughts... I already know I'm a pervert lol I hope this chapter was worth the wait =p**


	12. Love's Sacrfice

**Hey everyone! I've had to re-post this chapter as there were too many spelling errors which really bugged me. I also added some changes but only very little =p**

**I am really sorry for the late update. My course has been so time-consuming. It's unbelievable. Plus this chapter was very complex so I needed extra time to think it through. Thank you all for your lovely reviews: 1SuperKawaii, Vicky73, tokiko76, Nathalie Shiffer, Yuniee, pauLinian4eVer, L, RukiaCHAN1, seras3791, Omili (I hope you received my message in the end =p), Elcarim-Soberian-1222, silverqueen, su kuchiki, Darth-Taisha, sunlightangels, SunRises and isara-love. **

**L – I think you'll like the beginning of this chapter =p**

**seras3791 – I am really sorry for the late update. Hope it's worth the wait x**

**DRUON – Welcome officially to FF! I love your profile pic! **

**silverqueen – Hands off! Byakuya's mine! Lol Well, I might be okay to share...! x**

**sunlightangels – I wanted to reply to you but you have PMs blocked =p Thank you for both your reviews. I absolutely love harem fics so tend to write them too =p The Orihime thing will be revealed in later chapters x**

**This chapter goes out to all my reviewers but especially to DRUON for making me your fave author and to SunRises for your lovely messages (I hope this chapter answers most of your questions if not all =p) Love you all! x**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach just this plot**

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Loves' Sacrifice

Her mouth stayed open trying to catch her breath back. It gave him the opportunity to steal another deep kiss from her.

'I love you...' he whispered into her mouth.

Her core felt so sensitive to all those different sensations. She could feel his member begin to deflate to a softer state. The heat radiated from his manhood and seed which felt so wonderful to her. She could even feel the rapid pulsating energy from it. It gave her little tingles deep inside her.

'Mmm...'

She moaned at the silky touch of his hot tongue which sent shockwaves down to her core again. His huge hand cuffed her under the chin to bring her mouth closer so he could reach his tongue deeper within her. She relished in the jiucy warm feel of him dancing inside her. Then the same hand travelled quickly along her lean body and went under her Victorian blouse. It skimmed past her flat stomach and latched onto her breasts. He pushed further and sneaked into her lacy bra to squeeze her plump flesh. She broke off the kiss suddenly.

'Mmm...' she moaned again. He leaned close to her ear.

'Every part of your body now belongs to me,' he purred. He went to lick her earlobe before sucking on it.

The ache within her began to creep back especially when he moved to kiss her neck. She couldn't resist her animal instincts any longer and bit down at his long neck. He jerked slightly at the sudden action but he enjoyed it. He was proud of it; proud that _his_ blood was satisfying his lover. It actually aroused him.

She was busy sucking out his delicious blood when she felt a little twitch in her core. Byakuya was getting hard again. He looked up to rip off her blouse and simultaneously pulling off the buttons. It made her gasp.

'Byakuya...!'

'You turn me on so much, Rukia.'

He tugged her black bra down to reveal her lovely breats. He marvelled at her treaures. They were perfect and so tempting.

'I want to make love to you all night...'

'Mmm...'

She moaned as he took one of her breasts and stuffed it into his mouth. His thick tongue swirled over her perky nipples before sucking on them. He repeated this action over and over on both of her breasts. The silky smooth flesh gave a hint of floral body wash but the smell of Rukia's arousal overpowered his senses.

Rukia was reacting to his enlarged member and was lusting after some pleasure... _again_. She sat up a little to tear open his clothing to reveal his impressive chest. It was perfectly toned and velvety smooth. It was just divine. Rukia could feel her mouth watering just at the sight of his naked torso. Her shivering fingers stroked along his abs and past his nipple.

Byakuya must have liked that especially because his body shuddered at the touch. He stopped eating her breasts and moaned slightly when her tiny fingers stroked down his stomach and went to cup his sac; gently massaging it. He gave into his urges and began thrusting into her again.

'Uh!' she gasped.

His strokes were smoother now that she was getting used to them. All that was left was the overwhelming pleasure. She knew that she had wanted this for a very long time.

_You fill me; complete me..._

* * *

'Must we return to the real world so soon?'

Byakuya was a little disappointed. He would have stayed in the Secret Garden with Rukia forever if he could help it. Just the two of them. As the dimension was designed by Byakuya, it was constantly night time to suit vampires. But on the downside, there was no sense of real time. In actual fact they had stayed in the garden for a little over three days in real time.

'I don't want to get into trouble with Aizen-sama for kidnapping his heir, do I?' Rukia explained.

She actually was a little glad to return to the real world. They spent three days in the dimension and they had been constantly making love. They only stopped in between to eat and drink. Her body was aching a lot. Byakuya had a lot of stamina that could go on all day; all night! His vast sexual appetite could keep any woman satisfied! Byakuya was too busy reciting a chant to take them out of the dimension and missed Rukia's little giggle at the wicked thought.

* * *

Rukia walked alone in the corridor to the purebloods' bed chambers. Byakuya was called away to an urgent meeting with Aizen. She was day-dreaming; re-capping on the naughty things she and Byakuya were up to the night before when she spotted a woman with white robes step out of Ulquiorra's bedroom.

'Unohana-sensei?'

Unohana Retsu was not a pureblood vampire. In fact, she was not a vampire at all. She was a powerful witch. She possessed great knowledge of spells and medicine. It was quite uncertain why she was an ally to the vampires but they all held a huge amount of respect for her powers and loyalty. The witches' blue eyes lifted up carefully.

'Rukia-san,' she said softly.

Her long black hair which was braided at the front dipped slightly as she bowed towards Rukia. She was always well-mannered and spoke softly to everyone. Rukia noticed that the witch was carrying her medical box and alarm bells started ringing in her head.

'Is there something wrong with itoko-san, Unohana-sensei?' She hurried forward.

'Ulquiorra-san has been suffering from migraines. I have prescribed him some aspirin and we'll review his condition in a few days time.'

'Migraines?'

Rukia rewound her mind back. Ulquiorra was showing the same symptoms when she was first attacked by the poison in her system. She gasped as her hand clasped over her chest.

_Whoever drinks your blood is also infected..._

'It's my fault...'

Unohana could see a huge look of worry wash over the petite girl. She heard that Rukia had disappeared for a few days which caused Ulquiorra a lot of stress. That could have explained his migraine episodes.

'Don't worry, Rukia-san. Ulquiorra-san will be just fine. He's asleep at the moment but I'm sure he'd want to see you the minute he wakes up.'

* * *

With the lightest of footsteps, she walked over to Ulquiorra. The room was white all over. Walls; curtains; bed sheets; wardrobes; chairs; everything was all white. It was his favourite colour.

Her little feet travelled over to his bed where he laid asleep. He looked so peaceful but she could feel his pain. She had experienced it herself and she had inflicted it on him. Small pearl drop tears fell from her eyes. Ulquiorra was slowly dying. And it was her fault. She noticed Ulquiorra flinch at the sounds of her crying. Quickly, she rubbed off her tears with her fingers before he could see them.

He gradually opened his eyes. It was blurry at first but he could make out a small image in the dim light. The migraines and medicine made him feel quite groggy. His eyes focussed a little harder to see more properly.

'Rukia?' He rushed to sit up to reach her but she placed a firm hand on his.

'Don't force yourself to move. You need your rest.'

He returned to his previous position whilst Rukia pulled her seat closer towards him. The slight watery eyes and a little pink nose did not go unnoticed. He went to take her hand in his.

'You've been crying.' She turned away to hide her eyes from him.

'N-No.'

'You're still mad with me, aren't you?' She kept her eyes off him.

'I...'

'You have every right to,' he admitted. 'What can I do for you to forgive me?'

She looked over to him to meet his emerald eyes. She was still angry with him for what he had done but she was also plagued by her guilt for poisoning him. What was she supposed to say?

'I...' She hesitated for a moment. 'I just want the truth.' Ulquiorra took a deep breath and sighed.

'I see.'

Ulquiorra's hand manoeuvred over to the left of his face and fished out his eyeball.

'Watch carefully,' he instructed.

He crushed the eyeball and it shattered into tiny glistering particles. The pieces swirled and sparkled around Rukia like stars. This was a unique technique of Ulquiorra's. It showed what Ulquiorra saw and sensed during a previous time; like a replay of the past.

_

* * *

_

Flashback begins

_As the pendulum of time swung back to several years ago, Ulquiorra found himself running faster and faster. He barged through into the secret chamber. He abandoned his calm and collected demeanour. That was unusual for him but these were unusual circumstances. He even tripped over his own feet. Quickly, he picked himself up and continued running. Then he suddenly halted to a stop. _

_Although the sisters looked extremely alike he could instantly tell them apart. This girl's bang hung in the middle of her face and split into opposite directions. His eyes widened._

'_Hisana,' he gasped._

_Retsu and Hisana both looked up over to him. He watched in horror as Retsu pulled out a medical syringe from Hisana's arm. His eyes widened._

'_No...' he gasped and shook his head in disbelief. 'No...!'_

_He rushed over to her and Retsu backed away. Hisana stood up but lost her footing. The injection was already taking an effect. Ulquiorra took her into his arms as they slumped onto the floor. _

'_Bring her back round! NOW!' he yelled at the witch._

'_No...!' Hisana gasped. 'Ulquiorra-san, it's ok.' Her voice was soft and fragile._

'_Why?' he began to cry. 'Why?' His hands gripped onto her harder; desperately trying to keep her with him._

'_It was either me or Rukia. I couldn't let my beloved sister die.'_

_Aizen had started a new project. He wanted to harvest one vampire from each pureblood line. There were only 3 remaining members from the Cifer family. Ulquiorra wasn't going to be sacrificed as he was the only male heir and he had to carry on the blood line. So, Aizen was going to harvest either one of the sisters. Initially, it was going to be Rukia but Hisana decided to give up her own life._

'_How could you abandon me?' His tears continued._

'_Ulquiorra-san,' she paused to caress his white face, 'we both know it's not me that you truly love.' _

'_Hisana... I...' He adverted his eyes away from hers and stopped himself from agreeing with her. Neither could he deny it._

'_We are engaged,' he offered instead._

'_We were betrothed when we were babies. It was decided by our parents. You had no say in the matter.'_

'_I **do** love you, Hisana.'_

'_Out of duty, not out of choice. You were always in love with Rukia.' Her eyes began to get really heavy but she had a small bittersweet smile when she saw the guilty look on Ulquiorra's face. _

'_Hisana... I...' _

_It was true but he felt too awful to admit it. He did love Hisana but probably more in a sister kind of way. But although he wished to be with Rukia he was responsible enough to honour his engagement to Hisana. _

'_Please take of her for me.' _

_She stretched to plant a delicate kiss on Ulquiorra's lips. He returned the kiss but he knew deep down that it was only her farewell gesture. _

'_Take care of yourself, Ulquiorra-san,' she whispered before finally closing her eyes... '...my love...'_

_Flashback ends_

* * *

The diamond-like dust swirled back towards Ulquiorra after the playback. It gathered up to reform back to his eye again. He sat up to place it back into his eye socket. He kept both his eyes closed to control his emotions. The flashback had stirred up all that sadness that was previously buried deep within him.

Fresh tears rolled down Rukia's face. She could hardly breathe. Her body was trembling from the shock and crying. She felt awful. Her sister died for her and she wrongly accused Ulquiorra of killing her. She was wrong. She was _so_ wrong it made her hate herself.

'Onee-san sacrificed herself so we could be together?'

'Hai,' he whispered.

Although Hisana never said it but he knew it deep down that was what she intended. She was such a kind and loving woman even until the very end. She wanted both Rukia and Ulquiorra to be happy. That was why he suffered more than Rukia when Hisana died. It was because he knew the truth and he felt guilty. She gave up her happiness so _he_ could be happy. If he had it his way he would have took her place so neither sister was harvested. But by the time the solution was injected into Hisana it was all too late. Every day he lived his life with sadness and emptiness as he carried this secret alone. For a long time, he hid his love for Rukia because he felt it was a betrayal towards Hisana. But over the years he and Rukia got closer and closer that he could not deny his love for her forever.

'You hurt the most when she died?' She held his hand tightly.

'She loved me so much that she wanted to set me free to be with you. She loved me so much but I...' His voice wobbled. He just couldn't withhold his tears anymore.

'I couldn't return her love. She saw right through me...' Rukia got up to embrace him. They both cried to their heart's content.

'And you hid all this from me-'

'I didn't want you know. I just wanted to-'

'To protect me. You didn't want me to be burdened with the same guilt for her sacrifice. I know now.' She hugged him harder.

'Everything you ever do is for me. I know...'

* * *

It was pitch black in the Dead Forest. This place was famous for the lack of plants and animals. The soil hardly had any nutrients or minerals for any living thing to grow or survive. The only thing that did live there were some tall, thin trees with small branches and very little leaves.

Urahara Kisuke perched a glowing lantern over a tree branch and waited patiently. It was cold and foggy but he could definately see a figure in the far distance. As it slowly made it's way over to him he could see that she was wearing a black cloak to conceal her identity. Even when she stood close to him she still kept her hood pulled over her head just in case someone else recognised her.

'Do you have what I want?'

'First, you shall give me the antidote,' Rukia demanded.

'My, my, Rukia-san, aren't you brave,' Kisuke applauded her.

'By my calculations, the poison within your itoko-san should be kicking in right now, am I correct?' Rukia snared at him.

'So I guess _I'll_ be the one to make the decisions, don't you think?'

He spoke in a care-free manner but his words were filled with sarcasm. Rukia hated him. She wanted to slaughter him there and then. Carve out his flesh and feed it to dogs. She knew she was no match for him but it didn't even matter. It didn't even matter if she died in the process. This man was getting under her skin. But this wasn't about her anymore. Ulquiorra's life now depended on her. She knew that Aizen would kill her for what she was about to do but she didn't care. After everything that Ulquiorra had done for her she had to save him. She owed him so much. It didn't matter if the price she had to pay was her own life.

She threw the item into Kisuke's hands. It was a purple velvet pouch. Kisuke went to untie the gold string to open up the pouch. He poured out the item into his hand. He picked it up by a long gold chain and shined it in the moonlight to admire it fully. It was like a huge Victorian key and well crafted. It was slightly heavier than a normal key and much thicker. A thick layer of vintage gold was painted all over it. The top of the key was coiled into the shape of a crown with three loops depicting the gates to the Prince of Darkness. A small ruby was fixed securely in the middle of the crown and a white pearl was fixed underneath the crown. The shaft of the key was covered in long ridges. Two teeth stuck out at the end of the shaft and trapped another pearl in the middle.

A wicked grin washed over him. He had it. The gateway to Hell. The Skeleton Key he had been searching for nearly 20 years. An evil laugh erupted from him. He was unable to contain his delight.

'Finally! After all these years!' He settled down and replaced the key safely back into it's pouch.

'Good work, Rukia-chan, you are free to go.' He turned his back to leave.

'Aren't you forgetting something?' she reminded. He looked over his shoulder.

'Oh? And what would that be?' he retorted.

'The cure for the poison? You promised you would give it to me if I got you the Skeleton Key.'

'That is correct but I have now changed my mind. I will provide you with the antidote if you could help me with another matter.' Rukia's eyes widened.

'You liar! You have no intention of giving me the antidote! You just want to use me and then leave me for dead!'

'It's rather late of you to realise that now, Rukia-chan.'

'You bastard! AH!' she clutched her head in agony and kneeled onto the floor.

'Tck-Tck. Looks like the temporary cure I gave you is wearing off too. Too bad,' he spat.

'Teme...' Rukia growled before she fainted on the floor.

Kisuke smirked and walked off with his lantern. He clutched at the key through the velvet fabric.

'You have no idea what you've just given me, Rukia-chan. You won't need the antidote. All vampires will die now that _this_ is in my possession...'

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Oooh evil evil Urahara. Actually, I'm probably more evil since I've left you another cliffy! I had to split this chapter up because it had a lot going on. There's so many plots going on I'm struggling to fit them into one chapter =p But now I've finally revealed the truth about Hisana's death. I know a lot of you really didn't understand Ulquiorra's actions. I deliberately kept it hidden until now. Hope it surprised you guys =p

**I'm struggling to jump from this story to Cupids. So, what I might do is focus on one story for a few chapters first and then move onto the other story. What do you think?**

**Once again, I am sorry for the long wait I put you all through. The heavy part of my course is now over so I should be able to update more regularly now. Hopefully! Anyway, I hope you enjoyed reading this. Let me know what you think. All reviews welcomed. Ja x**


	13. King's Gambit

**Hey to those are still interested in this fic! After much consideration, I decided to continue with this fic. As a reader myself, I am aware of how frustrating it is to read an unfinished story. Although I'm not sure how often I can update this story as it is quite a complex plotline (as you'll notice in this chappie) but I am aiming to finish this before my Cupids story is completed (whenever that may be!). I don't expect there will be many chapters before the end though.**

**Anyways, despite the length of time, I would like to thank all those who took the time out to write me a review: 1SuperKawaii, vicky73, SunRises, DRUON, silverquen, xxUlquiorraLoveRxx, L, sereas3791, Dani Rose Ventra, bunny18, obsessed dreamer, Sherry-Chan141, bloodblueBlazingdragon, ReckoningDay, round and round we go, bluerose, lobsterstarfruit and special thanks to AkuRokuTurkTrainee for reviewing every single one of my chapters. I think only one reader, Vicky (who deserves much of my appreciation too!) has ever done that! Thank you all! x**

**DRUON: I'm amazed at how evil I have made Urahara in this story. A little more about him will be explained in this chapter, though I think it proposes more questions than answers...! =p x**

**Silverqueen: Lol I don't like sharing either but then when you have Byakuya, I'll get to cosy up to Ulquiorra. Mmm... yummy! Sorry for the long wait! X**

**L: I actually miss writing lemons though I think my ideas would probably be to smutty for FF! X**

**Sereas3791: Forgive me for being so cruel because I think I've left you another cliffy with this update too! **

**Dani Rose Ventra: Thank you for the lovely compliment! And I am sorry for the long long wait but I will try to finish this story x**

**bloodblueBlazingdragon: Sorry for the wait. I lost quite a lot of motivation for this story. Hope you are still reading and enjoying this story x**

**ReckoningDay: Thank you for the review and sorry for the long wait! X**

**bluerose: Hope you'll enjoy this update too and sorry for the long wait! x**

**So here is the update, only 17 months since the last...!**

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**King's Gambit**

'You're blocking my way.'

'That's the whole point, Kurosaki,' Uryu spat back, clearly standing in between the front door and Ichigo.

'I want some fresh air.' Uryu pushed his glasses further up the bridge of his nose and smirked.

'Do you think I'm an idiot?'

'Eh?' Ichigo raised an eyebrow.

'You're going to save her, aren't you? Don't even _try_ to lie.' Unable to answer him, Ichigo only opted to look to the side.

'Urahara-sempai knew you would waver and ordered me to place you under house arrest.' A look of genuine worry washed over Ichigo.

'What is Shishou planning on to do to her?'

'It's too late for those sorts of questions now.'

THUD!

Without warning, Ichigo locked the back of his arm under Uryu's chin; pinning him against the door. More confidence pumped through him as he remembered he had already defeated Uryu once before. Never had he intended to hurt Rukia but he convinced himself that it was all for the greater good but he was definitely not going to let her die.

'What's going to happen to her!'

He couldn't contain the rage in his voice. Uryu took advantage of Ichigo's emotions running wild and jabbed him in the stomach. As Ichigo was distracted with the shock of the punch, Uryu placed quick digs all over him before pushing him with great force from behind to sendng him flying into a wooden table, subsequently breaking it and everything that was sitting on it too. He walked a little closer as ichigo slowly tried to sit up, cursing Uryu will all sorts of colourful words.

'She's a fucking vampire! What do you think will happen to her when Sempai sends them all to Hell!' Ichigo's eyes widened as he realised that Kisuke was not going to spare _any_ vampire despite what he promised him.

'Rukia..!'

He scrambled along the wooden floor onto his feet and ran out of the house as fast as he could. Although he was running so fast like his life depended on it, he knew that it was all redundant. Kisuke had probably had got the Skeleton Key and everything was all over anyway. This was also why Uryu didn't get in his way anymore. He could even sense Rukia's spiritual energy evaporating which meant all was going according to plan.

_Rukia..._

_Please..!_

* * *

RUSTLE-RUSTLE

Collections of woodland debris pushed around as Ichigo raged down the forest. He could smell Rukia or perhaps to be more accurate, he could smell the overwhelming essence of her blood – that was not a good sign. Worryingly, he couldn't sense her spiritual energy – _definitely_ not a good sign. He came to a halt to where her blood was the richest but no Rukia was to be found. All that remained was a pool of blood mixed in with some grey matter.

'Wh-What happened?'

'Sempai's medication altered her DNA composition,' Ichigo flinched at the sudden voice of Uryu, 'removing the pureblood's virus; turning her into an ordinary vampire.'

'Where is she?' Ichgio attempted to get to the point but forced a sigh out of Uryu.

'Do you have any idea what the daylight does to a normal vampire?' Uryu considered how ironic his words were in that it was certainly not _normal_ to be a vampire full stop. Ichigo's eyes widened, turning to its attention to the grey ash-like matter...

_Rukia...?_

_Am I already too late...?_

* * *

'Aizen-sama, I have some important news.' Yoruichi was quick on her feet and barged through to the great Assembly Hall.

'Yoruichi, which part of "Do not disturb" confuses you?' Tier's displeasure was evident despite her softly spoken words. Both her and Aizen gave clear instructions that they did not want anyone spoiling their quiet game of chess.

'My apologies, but I bring bad news.'

'It can wait,' Tier threw back at her.

'We have trespassers, _Aizen-sama_.'

Yoruichi emphasised the last part, making it clear that she wasn't going to listen anyone else's orders, after all, Tier was only a Jaegerjaquez, the fifth, and more importantly, the weakest pureblood family line. However, Aizen seemed to have a slight soft spot for Tier so Yoruichi wouldn't go as far as to overrule her, much irk to Yoruichi. Although Tier often wore a daunting entire jawbone made out of bones, compared to the half that Grimmjow wore, she was very pretty couples with blonde plaited hair. Aizen, as the king, attracted many of the female purebloods.

'Is that so?'

What a flimsy line from Aizen. The king had clearly heard her but seemed less amused or maybe he was too immersed in his game. He took charge of the black pieces and seemed to be at the most disadvantage. Tier took her white king and swiped the black castle which rolled dead on the side. Aizen was the first to have a man down.

'How long are you going to stand there?' Yoruichi exchanged looks with Tier's; boring into her green eyes. It was quite an intense moment like two animals fighting to be the alpha female.

'Gate one has been breached,' she informed of Kisuke's presence within the castle. As if acting immediately to the newly informed data, Tier picked up her king and moved it forward.

'No, it was opened,' Tier said plainly as Aizen moved his right bishop wide to the side so that the white king could close in on himself.

'What do you mean? Like he was welcomed in?' Yoruichi's eyes furrowed in deep thought; staring hard at the right bishop.

_Is their game mimicking reality?_

_Do they know who the bishop is...?_

_How did they...?_

'Yoruichi, it would be rude if old friends did not greet one another,' he suggested.

'Hai, Aizen-sama,' she said before bowing and taking her leave. Aizen smirked as he moved his queen diagonally in line.

'Check...'

'Mmm, and I thought_ I _was your queen...' Tier making a slight roll of the eyes towards Yoruichi.

* * *

It was darker than dark. Someone had killed all the lights in the castle all of a sudden. Kisuke understood that meant the vampires had learnt of his presence. It was to be expected but still a little earlier than anticipated. But of course he came prepared. He'd be a fool to think he could take on the entire clan himself. Night cascaded lurking tree shadows across the floor and walls; creating a smokescreen somewhat. Only the moonlight, little there may be, shone through gaps between the curtains giving away the approaching black cat although Kisuke didn't fall under such innocent delusion.

'Well, well, well,' Kisuke managed a reluctant smile, 'it has been a long time...'

POOF!

Yoruichi had amused herself long enough and transformed back into her true form. It was often easier to sneak up on people or carry out confidential work in her cat form. Indeed, she knew that Kisuke would see right through the disguise since he had already seen it on so many occasions. Nevertheless, she just wanted to reminiscent on old times or perhaps she was just toying with him as usual.

'My, my, you sure don't age well, Kisuke,' she oozed her usual playful self. Like two predators they continued to walk towards each other while they sized up one another before their battle to the death. Neither of them intended on playing the victim.

'Unfortunately, growing old is an unavoidable human condition. What makes life so beautiful is that it is fleeting.'

'That's what I loved about you – you always had such a laid back view on things.'

'I thought you were only interested in my inside knowledge on the Soul Society or maybe it was my part in terminating vampires?' Kisuke no longer had the patience for small talk; his bitterness on the past clearly still evident.

'Although I was plotted to get close to you by Aizen-sama but my feelings for you were tru-'

'Spare me the lies!'

Talking wasn't going to resolve things. How many years had it been since the betrayal? After 10 years he must have stopped counting. Too many years were spent longing, then hatred and slowing brewing over a plan for revenge. Was today the day he finally could achieve it?

'You used me for information, framed me for betrayal and tossed me to the side when I no longer had any use to you.'

Recapping on the details was only making him angrier. He unsheathed his sword which was conveyed in his walking stick and a fiery red light swished along the hall bringing up parts of the wooden floor and carpet fibres with it. Being as agile as her transformation, Yoruichi managed to dodge the attack whilst showcasing her backward somersaults up the red velvet fabric. Her manoeuvres were effortless but then his attack was straightforward and slow which were easy to defend like there was no real meaning behind it. Was he holding himself back?

She crouched low with one hand on the floor and the other resting on her knee to steady her balance. Puzzlingly, he remained still; holding his sword to the side.

'You were free to join our alliance. It was you who refused.'

Back then, Aizen welcomed Kisuke with open arms but Kisuke was certain he only wanted to use him for his knowledge in medicine and science. Kisuke's aim was to cure vampires but Aizen's goal was to create some sort of vampire hybrid and that would definitely be the end of humanity. So he rejected the allegiance outright.

'And you left me for dead!'

Another few red lights filled with spiritual energy threw down the hall but again with no real sense of attack behind them. The attacks were no match for Yoruichi's renowned speed. She was simply skipping around them. It was as if he had no intention in harming her. Was that possible?

She bounced around the walls as Kisuke simply tore up the rest of the fittings and structure; deliberately missing her. She used her famous flash-step skills to quickly tuck behind him and her long arm stretched out as she released long white bands; curling them around Kisuke's sword and lightly yanking it to stop him temporarily. Her body leaned close and her voice was only a whisker away.

'Why do you think Aizen-sama hasn't issued your death warrant, Kisuke?' Her whispers cut him like a knife, ruling him speechless.

'Who do you think protected you from him?'

He narrowed his eyes; already with a speculative answer in mind. Of course the subject had cropped up several times over the years. There wasn't much benefit for Aizen with Kisuke living not when you weighed it against the odds of having him killed especially when there was a chance that he could 'cure' vampires. At his weakest moment, Kisuke found him believing or maybe even deluding himself that Yoruichi had possibly played a part in keeping him alive. Was his resolve; his heart wavering? Could he fool himself that her feelings for him were genuine once more? Or was it just another cunning game plan of hers? Was he reeled in another dangerous cat and mouse game?

A black shadow pounced from behind them and slashed Yoruichi up along her back; compelling her to the floor in agony. She struggled as she turned round to see her attacker but astounded to find Kisuke there with his sword drenched with her blood.

Fool me once – shame on you. Fool me twice – shame on _me_.

'It can't be! You were right in front of me! How-'

'You mean this?'

Kisuke uncurled his hand to showcase a small black ball. It wasn't until when he pressed his lips against it and blew into it that his secret was revealed. As the ball grew bigger it became more apparent that it was some sort of blow-up doll donning Kisuke's exact image. It was a complete replica of him.

'I call this my "portable gigai" which I can use as a decoy, although I have only used it to escape the housework.' Typical of him to throw in a joke even during battle yet he noticed Yoruichi giving a slight smile.

'Well, I am impressed you can still find the funny side of this after losing all that blood.' A smile was brought to his lips. Revenge did taste sweet.

'Who says I'm bleeding?' His eyebrows twitched at the remark. Slowly, he could see her shrinking, sort of like from the inside, just like a balloon...?

K-POW!

There wasn't enough time for him to defragment what was going on. It was Yoruichi's turn to unleash a surprise attack from behind. Her punches were hard and fast. There was so many of them coming from all directions he lost count. Obviously, he didn't remain standing up for long and ended up kneeling on the floor.

'I'm afraid you're not the only one with a new toy,' she hissed with pleasure.

Despite his coughing fit and increasing pain (girl can certainly throw a good swing) he just had to look up for some reasoning. Was he just suffering from concussion or were there really three versions of Yoruichi standing in front of him?

'H...' He struggled to catch him breath. 'H-How...?'

After another series of croaky coughs he spat out some blood onto the floor. The great force created by Yoruichi's attack managed to knock the skeleton key out from Kisuke's underarm and it slip along the floor. Howver, he was distracted by a small gentle hand taking a white folded handkerchief to wipe away the redness of his chin and lips. His grey eyes widened at the sight.

'You're supposed to be dead!' That wasn't quite the greeting Rukia was expecting but it was a priceless reaction nonetheless.

* * *

Carefully, Aizen picked up his castle from the side and placed it in line with the black king. It was cornered by Aizen's queen also. 'Check mate,' he summarised. A tall silhouette lurking in the shades caught his attention.

'Have you any indifference of me using Rukia as a gambit, Uliquiorra?'

The pureblood stepped into the light but still Aizen could never entirely work him out. Oh, how well he played his part – forever emotionless and elusive. But could he really have no qualms as to Aizen sacrificing Rukia in order to lure and capture Kisuke?

'Unohana-sensei had cured Rukia of her poison.' It was uncertain whether Ulquiorra was asking a question or simply making a statement.

'That is half correct. I was well aware of Urahara Kisuke's plan for Rukia. It was so embarrassingly obvious.'

'Aizen-sama has a mole placed amongst Urahara Kisuke.'

Now that was a definitely spoken like a statement. Aizen's spy had given him the antidote long before Rukia was first poisoned but Aizen wanted to lead Kisuke on and pretend things were going his way. And before he knew it Aizen would turn the tables around and attack him. Though how Ulquiorra figured out his plan was a little mystery.

It even shook Aizen himself a little. He was so impressed that he even smiled for him. It always amazed him how perceptive Ulquiorra was. It begged the question, "how much more does he know?" but then how much did he actually _need_ to know? It was partly worrying how Ulquiorra kept unravelling his secrets. It made it difficult for him to control his empire and Aizen demanded a lot of it. Maybe it was just his imagination running wild but he had an inkling feeling that Ulquiorra was up to something suspicious. Though what it exactly it was he wasn't so sure.

* * *

'You're supposed to be dead!'

'I hate to point out the obvious to you, Urahara-sensei, but I am a 300 year old vampire. How do you kill something that's already dead?' Rukia toyed with him as she walked away and picked up the skeleton key.

'Oh, you think with this?' She tossed the metal object into some lonely corner and quickly forgot precisely where.

'You see,' she continued with her taunt, 'there is no such thing as a Skeleton Key. Only a special hex can be used to open the Ninth Gate to Hell. The other stuff was all myths passed down by purebloods to deter the likes of you from destroying us.' Suddenly, he began to laugh out loud.

'What's so funny?'

'So it's true that I have someone working undercover for you demons. Thank you for letting me know who it is!' The girls exchanged puzzled looks.

'I didn't say any-'

Rukia let her sentence drop off when she noticed Kisuke bringing a black cube-like object. She had seen this once before but frantically tried to remember where.

'Wait! Stop him!' She realised what it was when Kisuke crushed the object into his fist but it was all too late. It emitted a burst of emerald green light, stunning their vision before it engulfed Kisuke into nothingness.

'Why did he have the Kuchiki Caja Negacion?'

'Clearly, we're not the only ones who have a spy...' Yoruichi answered regrettably.

* * *

**Ooh so it is a little short compared to other updates but I had to stop there because all these twists were too overwhelming for one chappie =p And the plot thickens still. Can you guess who the spies are? **

**I enjoyed the chess scene the most. Did you like my reference to the characters within the game? e.g. referring Rukia to the castle but also to mirror the fact that the castle's security had been breached =p**

**Most relieving thing is that Rukia is still alive – yay! However, there weren't any ByaRuki moments here as it didn't quite fit with the plot =p **

**Anyway,fee free to drop me any reviews/comments/ideas you wish to share. It will definitely spur me on for the next update! Ja x **


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